


Shutter

by DaimeryanRei



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-17
Updated: 2016-08-22
Packaged: 2018-07-15 16:43:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 31,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7230481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaimeryanRei/pseuds/DaimeryanRei
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Heero Yuy, award-winning reporter and photographer, travels to the L2 cluster colony to write a book about the colonists and the ongoing war. He’s more than surprised to find a young cleric, a priest, who will do anything to save the children at his church.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Title: Shutter  
Fandom: Gundam Wing  
Pairings: forthcoming Heero x Duo  
Genre: some drama, romance  
Warnings: shounen-ai, foul language  
Summary: Heero Yuy, award-winning reporter and photographer, travels to the L2 cluster colony to write a book about the colonists and the ongoing war. He’s more than surprised to find a young cleric, a priest, who will do anything to save the children at his church.

 

Key: ----- = scene change

\---------------------------

I tried to kill some time at the space port by filling out a ridiculous easy crossword puzzle. Whoever made space travel this incredibly tedious, I would like to have a conversation with him. Or her, I don’t know. My destination, the L2 colony cluster, was the worst of them all to boot. Not in terms of ‘tedious’, but in terms of ‘aggravating’. The security checks were ludicrous and complicated, even for such a difficult colony like L2. I had stripped down to my skivvies at least ten times for a bunch of guys (and girls) to show that I wasn’t a terrorist, a smuggler, a kidnapper or any other kind of criminal, let alone I was considering committing such heinous acts. My press card, usually good for immunity, caused me a lot of trouble; heck, I think it was _because_ of the press card that I had to go through so many checks. Lucky for me, I’m not easily intimidated or impressed. I’ve been to war zones before; stripping down and being interrogated by some burly guys barely registered on my radar. It did annoy me greatly, though. Now that I had passed security, I walked straight into this big, empty hall where every traveler to L2 had to wait until it was time to board the shuttle.

Most of the times when traveling, you’ll see kiosks, tax-free shops, a food court, some entertainment. Here, nothing. Not even a vending machine. Usually a hall like this would be hustling and bustling with people, but here it was silent, like a grave. These people weren’t exactly aching to return to L2, and looked like they could burst out in tears any moment. As a reporter, I was itching to ask about their stories. What were their reasons? Why did they go to L2, what was waiting for them there? But everyone looked defeated, tired and aggravated, so I didn’t think they would appreciate me asking questions. 

I had brought only one suitcase with me, and my special, smaller case for my cameras and lenses. I was going to stay on L2 for a week, which should be more than enough to get me started on my book. My boss, Quatre Raberba Winner, media tycoon and international president of Globe News, ran a tight budget and he wasn’t too keen on investing time and money in a trip to the infamous colony cluster.

“What are you planning to do? What are you looking for, Heero?” he asked me when I suggested the plan. 

“I want to find and write about the people behind the war,” I said. “The real people, I mean. Civilians, who suffer from the consequences of the military’s actions. People who try to survive, who fight to live to see another day. L2 has always been a hotbed of rebels and revolutions. There’s got to be a million of good stories in there, Quatre.” Yeah, I called my boss by his first name. One can afford that kind of privilege, after winning so many prestigious awards. I appreciate the recognition, but I don’t care for the awards in itself; trinkets, but Quatre likes to display them in his office.

“Stories like that have been done before, Heero. With the current war going on, I rather have you here.”

“Trowa is on the East-European battlefield,” I protested, “and Wufei is covering the Asian countries. What do you want me to do?”

“I was thinking about Sanq Kingdom,” Quatre said.

“Sanq? Relena Peacecraft? The Queen of the World?”

“Rumors are going around that the Romefeller Foundation is trying to sway her over to their side,” Quatre said. “You have a good nose for politics, Heero. You have the uncanny talent to unravel that web and translate it to our readers, who have a right to transparent information.”

“Please,” I was about to beg him, “no one has ever done an in-depth background story on L2 before, let alone write a book about it. Nobody knows what moves the people there, how they live, how they breathe, what they think!”

Quatre seemed to reconsider. I knew I almost got him. “Who knows, this kind of research can gain us another award,” I tried to push him over the edge.

“I’m not into the press to win awards, Heero,” Quatre said. “I want to tell the truth. With all these different factions and wars and Gundams on so many sides, mankind needs an independent, objective party to bring the news. I have the great fortune to be independent - no military or civilian force will tell me what to publish. Receiving recognition is wonderful, but it’s not my main goal.”

“I know,” I said. Nobody had to convince me of Quatre’s good, gentle heart. “Let me go to L2. Please.”

“It’s dangerous,” Quatre objected. I wanted to snort, but I refrained from doing so. 

“I’ve been to several war zones before,” I reminded him, “I was almost stomped on by Wing Gundam to get the right picture, do you remember?”

“Yes, I remember,” he said and admitted defeat. “Fine, Heero. You’ll get a budget and the opportunity to visit L2. But I want you to be extra careful. My resources on the colonies, especially L2, are extremely limited. There’s not much I can do for you if or when you get accused of terrorism. You can get into trouble there easily, even if you don’t want to.”

“I’ll be extra extra careful,” I swore.

And so I found myself at the international space port, heading for the L2 colony cluster. A strict anti-technology rule was enforced; no one could bring along cell phones, laptops, recording devices or anything else electronic for that matter. That’s why I had stuffed my suitcase with pens and a lot of paper. I carried nothing but my special case with the cameras and lenses, and a small plastic bag with some energy bars and a bottle of water. Good thing I bought the food and drink earlier, because like I said, in this waiting hall was nothing for sale. I sat down on one of the rickety plastic chairs, carefully holding my balance, and mentally prepared myself for another long wait. 

“Flight 87C65 to L2 will board now,” a mechanical voice announced. I got up from my seat and moved to the gate, just like everyone else… as if they were shuffling towards their imminent doom. Even the children were eerily silent, clinging to their parents’ coats. I kept my ears and eyes open for all the impressions, I didn’t want to miss out on a thing. I presented my boarding pass to the cabin personnel, who at least had the courtesy (and professionalism) to smile and welcome me, even if it’s a watery smile, and even if they have to confiscate my energy bars and water bottle, as ‘outside food and drink is not allowed, sir’. Annoyed, I settled into my seat and ignored childishly the whole safety instruction schpiel. Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt. The personnel finished their story with an extra warning about more security checks after landing on L2. I grunted. Well, I wanted this myself, so I better not moan and gripe about it, right? I strapped myself in and prepared myself for launch. A commercial, cheap flight like this wouldn’t treat me to anything luxurious, even the seat felt like a wooden plank. All right, time to get some sleep. I was sure L2 wouldn’t give me much time to rest, I had work to do. 

The cabin personnel’s warning about more security checks hadn’t been a joke. As if I hadn’t stripped down enough back on Earth, I had to do it all over again, and my press card was studied as if it was some secret license to kill. What were these people expecting? Finally, totally beaten and tired, the only things I wanted were a hot shower, something decent to eat and sleep for a couple of hours. It was impossible to book a hotel from Earth, so I had to find one on my own. Without any tourist information or other helpful people around, I decided to settle for the first hotel I saw, the one closest to the spaceport. It wasn’t as shady or grimy as I expected; in fact, it looked rather clean and professional. I was glad to see a friendly receptionist who handed me the keys to my room (after paying up front, cash, as space credit isn’t accepted). The room itself was small, but clean and sparsely furnished. It didn’t matter to me; it wasn’t like I’m here on a holiday. I took off my clothes once more, this time to jump under the hot water spray. I was told the utilities were pretty much low standard on L2, and could be randomly shut off. I didn’t use the water for longer than five minutes, which is enough for a quick, refreshing cleansing. I dried myself off and with a rugged towel around my waist, I called room service. The menu they offered was modest and sky-high expensive, but I ordered anyway. I just wanted to have something to eat, budget be damned. Fatigue hit me hard, and I barely managed to stay awake until the food was brought up. Tasteless and bland, but I shoveled it into my mouth, just in time before I passed out. 

I should’ve set my alarm clock, of course. I wanted to go out at night to see the underbelly of L2, the dark corners and dirty alleys of the colony. But I slept until the next morning and woke up feeling pretty much frustrated. I just wasted an entire night, I hadn’t got one picture or one letter on paper! In my defense, space travel is quite exhausting. You have to adjust yourself to a completely different environment and many people feel queasy after entering a colony. Different atmosphere, different pressure - it’s not like Earth at all. I felt slightly light-headed, and I knew I was probably going to feel that way for as long as I would stay here. I didn’t think of bringing any medication with me, I wouldn’t know what would help to get adjusted to the difference in pressure. I just had to take it like it was. I went downstairs to the extremely sober breakfast buffet: coffee, artificial butter, soft bread and some jam. I passed on the pale eggs and something that looked like… pancakes? Waffles? I had no idea, but it didn’t seem cooked all the way through, and I didn’t fancy getting sick. So I took a few slices of bread and a mug of coffee, before I packed my stuff and ventured out on the streets.

L2 in the early morning was like any other colony I had visited. People out on the streets, the daily hustle and bustle: small crowds, gathered together for a chat, others hurrying along, carrying a briefcase, a bag…but somehow, it felt depressing. I didn’t see many smiles, but I saw plenty of suspicious and anxious looks… and a lot more children, unaccompanied. War orphans, I guessed, who were abundant on L2 for some reason. I saw the little ones running, swerving around people, their hands quick and silent, only to find empty pockets. People on L2 weren’t rich. It reminded me to be very careful, as I had promised Quatre; if my wallet with my press card was stolen, I’d be really in a bind. Not to mention my camera equipment: I kept a small digital camera in my pocket as I preferred my Nikon with a long-focus lens, which was way bigger and more obvious. I took a few pictures here and there, avoiding portraying people without their consent. The streets and the buildings, in far more dilapidated conditions than I had ever seen, were free to photograph. It was a poor colony, but not necessarily unhappy, or so, I thought. The continuous war threat and the presence of violent rebel factions on the colony put a lot of pressure and strain on the inhabitants. It was no secret that L2 housed more criminal, smuggling and rebellious gangs than any other colony. I continued walking, scouting my territory and trying to figure out how I could come into contact with the colonists, preferably the first generation. I was going to create an outstanding, thorough portrait of L2, and in the line of Quatre’s principles, without any subjectivism or judgments. I wanted to learn how and why L2 was the hotbed of massive rebellion. I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I barely felt the tug on my jacket. I failed to register it somehow, as I was distracted by the church I saw in the distance. Just as I was wondering what a _church_ was doing on L2, I felt the light tug, just too late. When I looked down, a young kid with chestnut hair ran away from me, my digital camera in his hands. My flabbergasted mind weighed the options of running after the kid against the value of the camera. I had a steady income, I could pay for a new one and right now, I hadn’t used it yet, so the memory card was still empty. On the other hand, I’d be the laughing stock of the international press if they learned I was pick-pocketed like a gullible chicken. And maybe it was some kind of instinct, or a gut reaction, because before I knew it, I was running after the kid and yelling at him to give my goddamn camera back. Nobody turned around to look or to help me out. To make matters worse, the kid laughed out loud, laughing at _me_ for being such a dumb moron! His laughter dissolved quickly though, when he noticed I didn’t give up that easily. 

I took great pride in my condition and stamina, which was necessary to work as a reporter, especially when venturing into war zones. I managed to catch up with him and I was just inches away from grabbing his tattered coat. But then something didn’t cooperate: a tile was missing in the pavement and I simply tripped and fell. In my fall I grabbed a fistful of the kid’s coat, dragging the boy with me as I smacked to the ground. I heard him cry out, along with shattering metal and glass hitting the pavement, and I connected painfully with my jaw to the rough stone. The pain shot through my entire body and I saw stars, before everything turned black.

\-----------------

When I opened my eyes, I was met with silence. Confused, I blinked and stared at the grey ceiling. I didn’t know where I was, this wasn’t my hotel room or a hospital. A groan escaped me as pain returned full force, especially my jaw and head. What had happened? Oh yes, my mind was quick to supply me: I had been mugged and I had run after that kid, until I tripped and fell. At least I wasn’t left out on the streets to be robbed of everything else. I turned my head. The room was fairly dark, but I could make out the outlines of a large wooden dresser with copper handles. The curtains were closed, a heavy fabric that drowned out most of the sunlight. I craned my neck a little; next to me was a nightstand with two candlesticks and a black book. Along the wall, a closed chest and a chair. On the chair… those had to be my clothes, neatly folded. Surprised and slightly shocked, I put my hand on my chest, only to touch my own, naked skin. Someone had undressed me! I quickly checked, but to my relief I was still wearing my underwear. Now I noticed the bandages on my hand. I couldn’t remember if I had injured it during my fall. I heard footsteps, approaching my room. I put my hand back under the sheets and closed my eyes again. With a creaking sound, the door went open and someone entered. I could hear the rustling of fabric. It was strange how calm I felt, I didn’t feel anxious or scared at all. Soft, gentle breathing… and the curtains were pulled open, for just a small strip of daylight to shine into the room. I refrained from squinting or showing any other sign of being awake. Cool, gentle fingers touched my jaw.

“Nothing is broken.” A warm, female voice. “He might have a concussion, though.”

“He can stay here as long as is necessary, when he wakes up.” The male voice took me by surprise. I hadn’t heard the second visitor at all! I twitch just a little. Hands on the sheets, tugging. The woman was tucking me in. “Thank you, Sister.”

“I’ll go prepare the afternoon tea.” The rustling of the fabric again. Sister? What’s going on? Is this a hospital after all? The curtain was still open and I couldn’t help but to crack open one eye, out of curiosity. I saw a lot of black, but from where I was lying, I couldn’t see the man who spoke. Such a rich, warm timbre… I wanted to keep my eyes open, I wanted to speak and move around, but my body protested; the pain was still there and before I knew it, I sank back into darkness.

The next time I woke up, it was dark again, night-time dark. I threw off the blankets and threw my legs over the edge of the bed. A bit too abruptly, as the movement made me feel slightly dizzy. My feet hit the icy cold, stone floor. Shivering, I hopped over to the chair and grabbed my clothes. My knee refused to cooperate - and not much to my surprise, it was sporting bandages as well. I really had hit the ground harder than I thought. Stupid, I should’ve just let the kid go. The digital camera wasn’t worth that much, certainly not worth all this trouble. People had taken me in and cared for me, and I never liked owing people something. I dressed myself and because it was dark, I walked with my arms outstretched, touching and following the wall until I reached the door. The hallway was sparsely lit and voices flowed towards me. I ventured out, still slightly dizzy. A jolt of pain traveled from my jaw to my head every now and then; uncomfortable, but bearable. I went into the direction of the voices. Young voices, children…? I heard the scraping of chairs over tiles, the rattling of knifes and other cutlery… was it dinner time or something? I had no idea about the time and as I checked my wrist, I realized my watch was gone. Frustrated, I continued walking and ended up in a large room, furnished with long, wooden tables. Children, seated on both sides of the tables with a bowl of something that looked like porridge in front of them, all locked their curious eyes on me as soon as I entered the room. All the voices died down. For the first time in my life, I was completely at a loss for words. The sudden silence was such a sharp contrast to the earlier noise, that it made me feel embarrassed. A woman in the middle of the room turned around, her black robe rustling. She had to be the same woman who visited me earlier today - now I understood the black color. _Sister_. She was a nun. I was at the church I saw earlier, I just had to be. In the few seconds that everyone was staring at me, I spotted the kid who mugged my digital camera. To my morbid satisfaction, I saw a huge bruise on his cheek and a bump on his forehead; then I immediately felt bad. After all, I was the one who dragged him with me.

The woman approached me, showing a kind, friendly smile. “Ah, you’re awake,” she said and put the dirty bowls she was carrying, back on the table. “Would you like something to eat?”

“I don’t want to be of any inconvenience,” I said. 

“Not at all, not at all… here, please, sit down.” She pulled out a chair at the head of the table, and I hesitantly sat down. One of the children, a girl about twelve years old, handed me a bowl with the porridge-like substance. I thanked her. The woman sat down next to me.

“My name is Sister Helen,” she said. “Welcome to Maxwell Church. I’m sorry, but the Father has stepped out for the night. Eat, eat!”

It wasn’t porridge, but mashed potatoes, hearty and hot, and it filled me up much more than I anticipated. The kids were still looking at me, curious and suspicious, but after a few minutes, the chattering started up again and soon enough, everyone resumed eating. 

“Maxwell Church,” I repeated. 

“Yes, the safe haven for these children and everyone else who seeks refuge or a shelter.” She finished her own bowl. “We thrive on donations and the kindness of people.”

It was a poor place, obviously. The kids had clothes on that had been mended a lot of times, and the wooden tables were rickety and worn. On Earth, this would be called a ‘dump’. I realized my bad manners.

“I’m Heero Yuy,” I said. “I’m a reporter for the Globe News.”

“I didn’t think you were a regular tourist,” Sister Helen said. “I’m terribly sorry for what happened, Heero. Solo isn’t a bad kid…forgive the children. They grow up in poverty and the first thing they learn is that stealing is their only way to survive, unfortunately enough. He figured he could make a profit off of your camera.”

“I didn’t mean to make him fall as well,” I said. “I saw he had a big bump on his head.”

“He’s had worse.” She smiled. “If it takes a bump on the head to teach him that stealing is wrong, I’d be happy for him to only have one bump.” One of the children asked for her attention and I used the interruption to finish up my own meal. Soon after, she started to clear the dishes, but when I wanted to help, she firmly sent me back to my room. 

“The children will help me. Please rest for the night, Heero Yuy. You took quite the fall. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

\---------------------- 

My temporary habitat looked very different in the morning. It was fairly cold, the church didn’t have any central heating. Fortunately I wore a coat yesterday, so I put that extra garment on. I noticed the quality of the heavy wooden furniture; this has seen probably more generations than any kind of furniture back on Earth. I longed for a shower, but I hadn’t see any… cleaning facilities and I doubted the church would dispose over much running water. I didn’t want to drain the church of its resources, so I left my room and went back to the large dining hall, homing in on the sounds of the children again. This time, large loaves of bread were on the tables, along with butter, the same jam as I was served in the hotel, and something that looked like processed cheese. I didn’t see any milk or fresh fruit. Sister Helen greeted me like a long lost friend and asked me if I slept well.

“Like an ox,” I answered. “Thank you for your care.”

“I’ll take a look at your bandages later,” she said. “Would you like to see the Father now, or rather wait until after you’ve had breakfast?”

I didn’t want to be a bother to this kind woman, and I didn’t want her to spend any more time or food on me, when the children needed it much more. “I like to see the Father,” I said. Just a few words of thanks to the man and I was out of here. I was almost two days behind on my book - I couldn’t waste any more time. Sister Helen smiled and showed me the way.

She guided me through several high-arched hallways to an office. She knocked on the door, waiting for the “Enter” to open it, pushing against the heavy object. She stepped in and I waited patiently for her to beckon for me. “Father, this is Heero Yuy, our guest.”

“Thank you, Sister.” 

She motioned with her hand and I stepped in, only to have my still painful jaw going slack. With all the ‘Father this’, and ‘Father that’, I had imagined an elderly man who lead this church friendly yet firmly, not a young man about my age, with striking features: conspicuous large eyes with a purplish/violet hint to it, a gentle heart-shaped face and chestnut, long hair with cinnamon strands, tied together in a braid. When he got up from behind his desk, the braid slipped over his shoulder; it had to be at least… three feet long? I was just… completely amazed. He was dressed in black, in a very old-fashioned tunic that reached his knees. The silver crucifix on his chest spoke volumes. I was so baffled that I almost forgot to shake his hand, which he extended to me.

“Heero Yuy, good to see you,” he said. 

“I… I’m pleased to meet you,” I managed to croak out. His handshake was firm. He pointed me to a chair opposite his desk. I sat down, still too amazed to bring out a coherent word. 

“I’m Father Maxwell, but most people call me Duo,” he said. “Please forgive Sister Helen’s fondness for official titles. Well, Heero Yuy, I wished we met under better circumstances. On behalf of Maxwell Church, I offer you my apologies for what happened.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said. I knew I’m staring and I forced myself to look at the picture behind him: a painting of the Maid Mary and baby Jesus. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“Solo is one of the many kids who have no home but the streets,” Duo said. “I don’t try to make excuses for him. He knows very well that stealing is wrong. Life’s tough for the children on L2. You’ve seen for yourself in which circumstances they grow up. I try to provide them with food and shelter, but there’s only so much I can do.”

“You do the best you can,” I said. “I was an easy target, with the camera and all.”

“Global News, right?” His smile was so wonderful, I couldn’t get enough looking at it. “What brings a reporter from Earth to L2, if I might ask?”

I told him everything about my plans for my book, the report, Quatre, Global News, and he nodded as I talked. After I was finished, he reclined into his seat. 

“I wish I could help you with your book,” he sighed. “But both your cameras got pretty smashed, I’m afraid. And as you might understand, Maxwell Church doesn’t have any insurance or the funds to reimburse you.”

My cheeks turned a little red. “I’m not asking for money,” I said. “I… should’ve been more careful.”

“Let’s not play a blame game,” Duo said. “You’re welcome to stay at the church for as long as you like, Heero Yuy. Perhaps it’s interesting for your book to spend a few days here, so you can see how life is for the children, how the next generation grows up on L2. It’s the least we can do in return.”

“The kid… Solo’s all right?” I asked.

“Couldn’t be better. Don’t worry about him.” Duo slid his chair back and opened the top drawer of his desk. He pulled out my wallet, watch, cell phone and the two cameras. “Here are your personal belongings. Once again, I’m very sorry about all of this.”

I leaned forward and checked the cameras. Surprisingly enough, the Nikon was hardly damaged, except for the long-focus lens. The digital camera was a goner, though. I pulled out the memory card and handed the camera back to Duo.

“It’s nothing much, but maybe the kids can play with it? The little ones, I mean? This has no street value.”

“I think they know more about street value than I do,” Duo said. “It’ll make a wonderful toy. Thank you, Heero.” He smiled again. How could someone be so handsome with just a smile? And why was I thinking about him as ‘handsome’? “Feel free to stay and look around. The church is public domain.” 

“I have to go back to my hotel,” I said. “But I’ll come over and look you up.” I wanted to see more of him, and at least take a picture.

\-----------------------------------------------

Back at my hotel room, I inspected the Nikon some more. Aside from a dent and a few scratches, the camera had survived. Just like I thought, the long-focus lens was beyond repair, its glass had shattered on the pavement. I put it back in my suitcase, just in case Quatre wanted to deal with the insurance, though I didn’t think they’d cover an incident like this. I decided to go out on the streets and when I went downstairs, the woman behind the reception desk gasped when she saw me.

“What happened to you?” she asked, and her hand went subconsciously to her jaw. I had looked in the bathroom mirror and seen the bruising; it was a very impressive black and blue, and my hand was still bandaged. 

“An accident on the street,” I said.

“I usually work the night shift,” she said apologetically. “I haven’t seen you return last night. Usually we file a missing person’s report when someone doesn’t return after two days.”

“I’m all right,” I said. “I just had a run-in with the pavement, and I got taken care of at the church.”

“Maxwell Church?” She looked… disappointed, disgusted even. 

“How many other churches are there?” I asked, but the sarcasm eluded her.

“None,” she answered. “But you should be careful.”

“I’ll be sure not to trip again,” I answered dryly. She shook her head.

“No, about the church. Not many people associate freely with Duo Maxwell.”

“Oh, really?” I briefly wondered why I got so defensive. After all, I hardly knew Duo. 

“He’s not a real priest,” she said, lowering her voice to a mere whisper. “He grew up in that church himself.”

“And that makes him a criminal?” I raised my eyebrow.

“He’s a godsend for the kids,” she said, “but there’s something strange about him. His name goes around in the criminal circuit. He was a thief before he started serving the church.”

“We all make mistakes in our pasts,” I said sharply. She nodded reluctantly, looked at me and decided she had said too much.

“If you want a check-up at the hospital, I can give you directions,” she offered.

“I’m fine,” I answered, tone of voice slightly kinder and I turned around to leave.

\-----------------------------------

While I wandered around outside, my thoughts went back to Duo. One hand, I was glad he wasn’t an ‘official’ priest; it made me happy, for whatever reason. On the other hand, he had introduced himself as Father Maxwell, which meant he took his…profession very seriously. Where could I ever hope to stand with this man? Oh yes, I was having it bad, I just knew it. I was falling head over heels in love with him, and why in the world was it always someone out of reach? My previous crush had been the brother of the Queen of the World for crying out loud, if you wanted to talk about someone hard to reach… and now Duo Maxwell, how could this be? Why was this happening to me? I just met the man, and I wasn’t the kind of guy to go for looks alone, was I? However, the woman at the reception desk had mentioned something grave about him. Duo’s name going around in the criminal circuit? I couldn’t imagine that could be true. He was looking out for the children, not endangering them. I decided to focus on my book for now. Quatre wanted to see results, I wasn’t here to act in favor of my love life. I was a reporter for the Global News and not Heero Yuy, the Single Reporter Looking for a Hot Guy Even if He’s Wearing Priest Garb. I used the Nikon to snap pictures, this time from people after I asked their consent.

I listened to their stories, jotted everything down in my self-developed shorthand that none could read but me. I crossed a market, a business district, a pawn shop (no long-focus lenses, unfortunately) and a few suburbs. L2 was in a depraved state because of the government refusing to cooperate with Earth or any other ally. The economy thrived on smuggling, as the government didn’t align itself with any of the factions in the ongoing war. Therefore, they didn’t receive any (international) support and had become totally dependent on smuggling and other criminal activities, for which the inhabitants suffered; there was no stable economy, no steady import or export of goods, ranging from daily bread to maintenance. At first sight, everything seemed ‘innocent’; children playing on the street, only to wear those ratty, ill-fitting and often mended clothes. Women chattering and talking to each other, but not being able to buy vegetables to make a healthy dinner. When looking further: a pharmacy without anti-fever meds. Long lines for the bakery, the butcher shop, any kind of store. Dilapidated buildings, cars rusting where they were standing, no public transport. I was surprised to discover the friendliness of the colonists, after I got past the initial suspicious and distrust. I did receive some looks because of the Nikon, and I could see certain types calculate its value, debating if it was worth attacking me for it. I was better prepared to defend myself from burly guys picking a fight with me than a super fast kid swiping my digital camera, I thought to myself, bitterly. But would I have ended up at Maxwell Church if that brat hadn’t…? Probably not… however, the church stood out in this landscape, so I figured I would have visited it anyway, sooner or later. But then again, I would’ve only met Sister Helen. Duo might not have been around… and so my thoughts kept going in circles, back to Duo, over and over again. And so it wasn’t strange that I found myself at the church once more. Sister Helen was in front of the building, sweeping the stairs. Two of the oldest girls were helping her out, carefully removing dust and sand.

“Heero!” She smiled as soon as she saw me. “You shouldn’t be out and about like that,” she chastised me gently. “Katherine, get our guest a glass of water. Would you like to sit down?”

“I’m a healthy young man,” I tried to joke.

“You injured your knee,” she reminded me. The bandages had been irritating me, so I had removed them, back at the hotel. The scrapes on my skin barely deserved to be bandaged; I had injured myself much more as a kid, falling off my bike once. “You should sit down. Did you come for the Father? I’m sure he’s around somewhere.”

Now that I had met Duo in person, and saw for myself how young he was, it felt very strange to hear anyone refer to him as Father, especially because the woman in the hotel had told me he wasn’t a real priest. Sister Helen probably didn’t care much for Duo’s background, if she kept calling him like that.

“Sister Helen, you’ve probably been here for a long time?” I asked. She looked at me.

“I was born and raised on L2, yes.”

“You must know what I do for a living,” I said. I still didn’t know who had undressed me, but I figured she had seen my wallet and press card. “I would like to talk to you about this colony, and cite you as a source for my book. With your permission, of course.”

She hesitated, clearly overwhelmed by my request. “Please give it a thought,” I asked her. “If you don’t want to, I understand. You’re not in any way obligated.”

“I’ll think about it,” she said, relieved that she didn’t have to answer right away. As it was, Katherine returned with the glass of water, followed by Duo. He stepped through the large door opening, his exuberant smile already present.

“Heero! So good to see you. I trust you haven’t encountered any other people trying to get your camera? You’re right in time for dinner.”

“Oh, I, eh, I was just passing by,” I said, at the exact moment my stomach chose to let out a loud grumble. I had skipped lunch in favor of interviewing and photographing the colonists. I always forgot to eat when I was doing research. 

“I’ll put out one more plate.” Duo grinned at me. 

“Father,” Katherine said and tugged at his garb.

“Yes, Katherine?”

“Are you going away tonight again?”

My curiosity was piqued. At the previous dinner, Sister Helen told me that Duo had ‘stepped out for the night’. I have a very curious nature of course, I’m not a reporter for nothing. And if Duo’s name really went around in the criminal circuit - which I still refused to believe - then of course he would conduct his… ah, business, during the nocturnal hours. No sign of worry or distress showed on his face as he ruffled the girl’s hair.

“I’ll be having dinner with all of you tonight,” he said and the girl’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “All right, let’s set the table!” They went inside the church and Sister Helen picked up on my inquiring look.

“He visits the sick and the dying,” she explained. “It may not mean much to everyone, but to some it does. He’s with them in their last hour of need and their final minutes.”

I felt terribly ashamed. Here I was, thinking that a ‘fake’ priest was all but the center of the criminal circuit, while Duo was consoling those who had fallen upon hard times and those who needed comfort when the end was near. He did this out of the goodness of his heart, who was I to doubt that? 

That night, I helped with the dishes, despite Sister Helen and Duo protesting. It was a very easy chore, as the children passed the plates around and around until it was completely dry and put away in the wooden cupboard. The children weren’t obligated to do the chore, but anyone could see that they were very fond of both Helen and Duo, and helped out spontaneously. The few adults seeking shelter at the church, put the chairs back together at the tables and swept the floors. Every now and then, the electricity flickered. I wasn’t used to L2’s fickly power supply, but nobody paid attention to it. The majority of the church was illuminated by oil lamps and huge candles, only the kitchen and the laundry/washing room used electricity, whenever it was available. After the dishes were done, I started the interviews with the adult people in the church, and I spoke to some of the children to learn about their background. I ignored my cramping fingers from all the writing I did; so many stories, ranging from plain bad luck to miscalculated fortune. The children often had the same story: abandoned, dumped, left behind. Sad stories of people framed by the government, not knowing what to do anymore, desperate, and the children taking the brunt of it. I was going to need weeks, if not months, to work on all of these stories and do them justice. I wanted to capture the spirit, the atmosphere of both happiness and sadness on the colony. For the umpteenth time I wished I could’ve brought my laptop or a recording device, but that was against the rules. 

When I took a break, I noticed that Duo was also in the living room. I called this the ‘living room’ because it featured a large, old-fashioned open fire place, which was a good thing as the church didn’t have general heating. He was standing amidst the other adults, and it didn’t escape me that they treated him with reverend respect. Just when I looked at him, Duo caught my stare and smiled at me. Blushing like a teenager, I tried to return the smile but ended up in a wolf-like grin, so I quickly turned my head away. I didn’t miss one of the young kids, I recognized Solo, running up to Duo and all but latching onto his leg.

“Duo, Duo, there’s someone here to see you!” His voice rang out in the tall room, echoing. Sister Helen, standing next to him, put her hand on Duo’s arm.

“You’re busy,” she said, “I’ll go, Father.”

Solo shook his head. “No, no, it had to be Duo! He wanted to talk to Duo only.”

“Some people are more demanding than others,” Duo said. “Thank you Sister, I’ll see this guest myself.”

He left the living room a little too quickly to my taste, and something about his answer and attitude was off. Sister Helen or the children didn’t seem to notice and the people Duo had been talking to, huddled together at the fire place with a mug of coffee. Without another word, I left the living room as well. I didn’t know why I decided to follow Duo, rather than to chalk it up to my natural curiosity. I made sure that my footsteps didn’t echo on the tiled floor, and I shuffled forward, keeping my distance. I didn’t need to go that far though, I could already pick up on the voices from where I was, pressed flat against the wall. 

“I told you not to come here,” Duo’s voice was curt and sharp, lacking its usual warmth. “Not in the presence of the children!”

“I just swung by,” another voice, definitely male, older, and cold. “I wanted to see for myself what’s so important to you. You’re doing a great job.”

“Spare me your platitudes.” A door was opened, the sound of creaking wood. Duo’s office? “We’ll talk inside.”

It was the shortest conversation I had ever heard, but nobody needed to tell me that it was foreboding. Duo’s voice held something menacing, something angry… and if I thought it was lacking warmth, it was still a furnace compared to the other guy’s voice. So cold, so… emotionless. Who was he and why had he such an effect on Duo? I kept my ears peeled, but I didn’t hear any other sounds but the children playing, and I was afraid getting caught in the hallway as the kids tended to run up and down here. I went back to the living room. Nobody had missed me and I continued my interviews and writing my stories until it was time to retreat. I decided it was best for me to go back to my hotel and work on the interviews. I had more than enough material to write a good introduction to my book. Of course, I had reserved a big part for Duo as well; I wanted him to play an important part in my book. I went to say goodbye to Sister Helen and the children. 

When I walked up to the large entrance door, Duo was standing in the opening, looking out over the cobblestone square. I looked in the same direction, but I only saw the retreating back of a skinny man with white hair. 

“Excuse me,” I coughed, to show that I wasn’t sneaking up on him. Duo didn’t even startle.

“You’re leaving already?” He asked.

“Yes,” I said. “I have a lot of work to do.”

“I take it you’ve got enough information?”

“Enough to get an introduction started. It’s going to be a great book.”

“I’m sure of it,” Duo said, but he sounded a little defeated. Was I mistaken, or was his face slightly pale?

“Everything all right?” I asked tentatively. 

“Don’t worry,” Duo said and his smile was back full-force. “Have a good night, Heero.”

\-------------------------------------

Duo and his mysterious guest kept plaguing my mind. I wished I had seen the other guy’s face. I wanted to know who he was and why he had upset Duo. He had to be upset; despite that lovely smile, something was bothering him, I was sure of it. While I was slaving over my story, Duo’s face came up in my mind, and his “Have a good night, Heero.”. It almost started to sound ominous. I checked my watch; it was close to midnight. I was ready for the second phase of my plan: L2 by night, the underbelly. I couldn’t write a comprehensive book about L2 without experiencing both sides in person. Today I’d seen the surface, now it was time to see what was submerged in the colony. There was only one way to solve this: I had to find out what was bothering Duo, and by default, bothering me. I had to return to the church and figure out what was going on.

Maxwell Church was dark and ominous, looming as a tower of vengeance in the late hours of the night. I imagined Sister Helen wandering the hallways to comfort sick and sad children, and as for Duo… my imagination drew a blank. I’d love to see him nice and safe and warm in his bed, but I had the feeling he wasn’t the kind of person to snuggle up all cozily like that. I wouldn’t mind having him snuggle up to me, though… and that was a thought I had to file away immediately because it was disturbing my concentration, and I just saw a backdoor of the church open. All my hours of waiting paid off. A slender figure, clad in black, left the church. Judging from his height, it could be Duo, but I shouldn’t be drawing conclusions until I had checked my facts. I knew better than to plain assume things. I have reported war zones and battlefields since I was barely eighteen. I was there, on the frontline, I was close to mobile suits, heck, I’ve even seen a Gundam up close and personal. I was there, with my camera, with my recording devices, with my laptop. I wrote award-winning articles, but let me tell you, no one is thinking of a Pulitzer when the beam cannon of a Gundam is firing just inches away from you. At least I wasn’t. I was an observer, I still am, and tonight I was observing someone who just snuck out of the church. I had learned a lot on those battlefields. How to stay undetected. How to keep a low profile. I had no difficulties tracking the person who kept a steady pace, jogging through the streets of L2, easily and handily using the shadows. The woman from my hotel… could she be right after all? The way the person comported himself showed an excellent experience. This was something he had done many times before. I tried to keep my personal thoughts out of it. Observing and objective, remember? 

He stopped in front of a building that I didn’t recognize. Everything looked the same in the dark, but this guy knew his way around. For a moment, I lost him out of sight. I scoured the building until I saw movement, so fast that I asked myself whether I imagined it. Someone was climbing through a window to get inside. I crossed the street and attached myself to the wall of another building. I wasn’t going to follow him inside, so I patiently waited. It didn’t take too long; after twenty minutes I heard just the tiniest noise of the window opening again. A faint rustling of fabric, and then someone came climbing down. As soon as his feet hit the ground, I moved - not even wondering for a second whose business I was meddling with. I grabbed the person in black at the shoulder, turned him around and in the faint, artificial moonlight, I recognized those eyes immediately, the only visible part of his face.

“Duo,” I hissed, shocked and disappointed at the same time. His eyes went wide, probably not because he had been caught, but because it was _me_ who had caught him.

“Heero?” His voice was unusually high-pitched. “What are you doing here?”

“I think the question is, what are _you_ doing here?” I had a firm grip on his shoulder and forced him back against the wall. He didn’t put up any resistance, my grip was tight enough to not break free that easily. “Do the children know that their Father rummages around at night?”

“Oh, please.” Duo did a half-hearted attempt to swat at my wrist. “Are you a cop? An undercover? You’re not a reporter after all, are you?”

“I am.” I was fairly calm, even if my stomach and my heart were jumping up and down. The adrenaline flowed through my body, and I noticed I was trembling. Duo didn’t seem to notice, or not to care, though. “I’m a renowned war reporter on Earth.”

“Well, do I have a newsflash for you,” Duo said coldly. “This is L2. We don’t have war - we are a war. Let go of me, Heero. You have no idea what you’re getting into.”

“Then tell me. I’ve seen worse.”

“Not all wars are fought with guns and Gundams.” He snorted derisively when he saw my surprised look. “News travels slow to L2, but we’re not totally deprived. We know what’s going on outside of the colony, even if we are a few months behind.” His voice was muffled by the shawl he was wearing to cover up his face, but I could make out the words. “You have no right to judge me, Heero. Now, let go of me.”

“No.” To get my point across, I tightened my grip and now he was shoved against the wall. He narrowed his eyes. “Let go of me. You have no idea what you’re dealing with.”

“Then tell me,” I repeated. I moved up my other hand and tugged at the black scarf, firmly wrapped around his head. I figured he had tucked his braid under it as well. Freeing up his nose and lower part of his face, I stared at him intently. “Tell me.”

“Get away from me,” he hissed. The artificial moonlight shone on his face, rendering him visibly pale, ghostlike, with far more pronounced cheekbones and a hollow to his face that I didn’t notice at all when Duo was in the warm, kind environment of the church. 

“What did you do?” I asked, totally taken aback. “Duo, what’s going on?”

This time, his attempt to break free wasn’t half-assed. With surprising strength, he rammed his hand against my lower arm, immediately followed by a blow to my stomach. He was so fast and agile that I found myself doubling over, wheezing the breath I’d been holding.

“Don’t you ever come close to the church again,” was his parting shot, and he was swallowed up by the darkness.

\--------------------------------


	2. Chapter 2

I had no other choice but to return to my hotel. It was of no use to follow Duo, he had made his point very clear. Going back to the church would only aggravate matters and I didn’t want to confront him right now. I didn’t know what I wanted. I had to straighten out my thoughts, I had to think and decided to call it quits for the night. When I arrived at the hotel, the woman behind the reception desk was the same woman who had told me about Duo and his possible involvement in criminal activities. After tonight, it really pissed me off that she’d been right. I was a star reporter - how could I have missed the signs? Her eyes traveled immediately to my face; the impressive bruise on my jaw had turned yellowish, and it was still quite conspicuous. I had taken off the bandages on my hand and knees; the cuts and scrapes had healed nicely, only a band-aid would do. 

“You like danger, don’t you?” She said. “Not many people go out at night.”

“I’m a reporter,” I said gruffly. Being honest about my job had brought me more than telling lies, oddly enough. I didn’t like to spin twists and tales and to get caught in my own web of lies. 

“A reporter, hm? Something specific in mind?”

I told her about my book, giving her the general outline without mentioning Duo. 

“It’d be nice if someone without prejudice told the rest of the world about L2,” she said, nodding in approval. “Too many wild stories are going around. Not everyone here is a criminal or a smuggler.”

“I noticed a lot of bad luck going around,” I said.

“It’s the government,” she immediately answered. “A lot of corruption and a lot of bad decisions. Sometimes the other colonies reach out and send us food transports and the government is all too happy to accept it. They think they can solve all the problems but they _are_ the biggest problem. They take the food for themselves and stuff their faces with meat and potatoes, while wondering why the inhabitants are so dissatisfied and rebellious? They can’t see the forest for the trees and the entire colony suffers for it.”

It was the same story I had heard over and over before, and I knew it was going to be the message of my book: an accusation at the address of the current corrupted and lazy government. As an Earth citizen, I wouldn’t have to be afraid of any repercussions, and Quatre Raberba Winner had my back. I thanked the woman for her time and she looked pleased. I went to my room, took an ice-cold shower (no warm water past midnight) and went to bed.

\------------------------------------

After a night of restless sleep, I went back to the church in the morning, of course. Truth to be told, I didn’t dare to admit to myself that personal reasons were involved - I wanted to see Duo. I just couldn’t leave him alone. I wanted to know more about him, to be with him… fortunately, Sister Helen and the kids welcomed me exuberantly, but when I asked for Duo, the nun shook her head.

“Father is out this morning,” she said. “He’ll be back by noon, though. Would you care to wait?”

Hesitant, I was about to say that I’d be back later when suddenly a piece of wood snapped, sounding like a gunshot being fired. Everyone ducked, but soon the crying started: a young boy had sunk through one of the rickety chairs and had hurt his leg from a splinter in the wood. Tears streamed down his face and Sister Helen went over to the boy to comfort him, while I picked up the chair.

“More wood for the open fire,” she said, always looking on the bright side.

“It snapped quite clean,” I told her. “I can fix this. Do you have a hammer and some nails, perhaps?”

“There’s a shed in the garden,” the nun answered. “I’m not sure if the tools can still be used, though.”

“I’ll go check,” I said and I left the living room. One of the kids followed me: it was Solo. 

“Hey,” I greeted him.

“Hey,” he said. The bump on his head was as good as gone, but the scrapes on his face were still showing. “It’s through here.”

“Thank you,” I said. “I’m sorry if I caused you any trouble.”

“It’s not your fault,” he said as he kicked at a pebble. “But I was going to get some sweet credit for that camera of yours. Now the toddlers are playing with it.”

“What were you going to do with the credits? Keep them to yourself?”

“Nah,” he said and he kicked at the pebble again. “I would’ve given it to Duo.”

“To Duo?”

“Yeah, but the Sister doesn’t want me to give him anything. I mean, she knows that most of the things we… have, is stolen. She doesn’t want us to bother him with stolen things.”

“Well, as head of this church, he won’t accept something stolen or illegal,” I said and cringed at the same time. Solo looked at me quizzically as he guided me into the garden. It was the saddest excuse for a vegetable garden I’ve ever seen. 

“I don’t want to get Duo in any trouble,” Solo continued. “If the police comes and takes him away, the church would be no more.” So young and already so aware of the consequences of Duo’s absence, it was just sad. He should be playing outdoors with the other kids, instead of worrying and suffering from the impact of life on L2. Without another word, we reached the garden shed. I pulled the door.

“It’s stuck,” I said, superfluously. 

“Sister Helen couldn’t open it.” Solo looked at me with his freckled face, smirking. “You’re stronger than Sister Helen, aren’t you?”

I accepted the kid’s challenge and tugged and pulled harder, finally yanking the door open. Clouds of dust and all kinds of bugs flew out, and I quickly stepped aside. Solo batted at the bugs and danced around to avoid being stung. I entered the shed without giving it a further thought and walked straight into the thickest cobweb of my life. Ignoring Solo’s howls of laughter, I removed the sticky strings and praised myself lucky I wasn’t wearing any Armani. A little bit of light was filtered through the broken window panes, the remnants of glass too dirty to allow any light in. I squinted. Large equipment like a lawnmower, rakes, hoes, even a shovel and a pair of large hedge clippers was positioned against the back wall. Nothing was electrical, of course. I spotted a rusty tool box on a shelf, along with a few other tools: hammers, pliers and brushes scattered all over the place. 

“Hey, look at this! It’s a bike!” Solo pulled a dusty piece of cloth off of a shapeless object. 

“I love your optimism,” I said. That thing could hardly be called a bike. Rusty, flat tires, a broken frame, no brakes… No one had been in this shed for years; decades, perhaps. I gave Solo the brushes to carry and we stepped outside, back into the artificial sunlight again. I didn’t need more than one second to see who was waiting for us. Duo stood next to the door leading back to the church. Solo beamed at him.

“Look, Duo! Tools! Heero’s going to fix the chair!”

“That’s great,” Duo said, his voice calm yet without intonation. “Why don’t you go inside, Solo, and show the Sister your tools?”

The boy all but skipped inside. I put the toolbox down, as it was heavy. I waited for Duo to start talking. He didn’t disappoint me.

“I told you to not come back here,” he said. No hostility or menace in his voice, though. I shrugged sheepishly. 

“I haven’t finished all the interviews for my book yet.”

“Then finish them and leave.” Duo turned around so fast that his braid cut the air with the same sharp, brusque motion. 

“Duo, wait.”

He froze mid-step. My heart skipped a beat. “Please,” I said.

“Please what?” He didn’t turn around. I didn’t know what to say. He looked over his shoulder, his face downtrodden, but with a determined expression. “What, Heero? You’ve seen what I am. You’ve seen what I do. You can write all about the thieving, stealing Priest in your important book and let the world know that L2 is sick to its very core.”

“Duo, that’s not what…” I couldn’t come up with the right words. Strange how I always knew what to say when writing, but now I was lacking eloquent, coherent thoughts, and I faltered like a shy high school kid. “Please listen to me,” I said. “I acted too roughly and too rashly. I’m sorry.”

“There’s no need to be sorry.” Duo straightened himself and resumed walking, leaving me in the garden. He hadn’t told me to leave right now, so I stubbornly went into the church, following him.

“Duo. Duo, please wait.”

“What is it you want, Heero?” He raised his voice slightly. Despite the curt tone, his warm, rich timbre was music to my ears, and I… wanted to hear his voice over and over again. What I wanted? I wanted to help him. I wanted to protect him. Something was going on and now that the cat was out of the bag, I couldn’t turn away and pretend that nothing had happened. Call it my reporter’s instinct, and yes, I pretty much ignored the warning bells going off in my head. It was becoming personal and there was no way I could stop it. 

“You’re not sick,” I said. “The kids adore you. Sister Helen thinks the world of you.”

“They wouldn’t if they knew who I really am.”

I grabbed him at the upper arm, not to restrain him, but to force him to look at me. I knew he had the strength to break free, but he didn’t fight back.

“I want to help you,” I said. “If there’s anything I can do…”

“Why?”

I was taken aback. “Because…”

“Because of your book? Because you want to be the hero? I don’t need a hero, and the kids don’t need a hero either. Do you know what they need? Do you know who they need? A provider, a caretaker, someone who gives them love and warmth, someone who gives them food and shelter…”

“And that’s what you do,” I said. “Can’t you see? Don’t you understand what I’m telling you?” I could’ve recited a phone book for all that matter, I just wanted Duo’s attention. Those eyes, those violet eyes with a hint of purple…blue… anything in it, his face, framed by those chestnut colored bangs, I wanted to touch him, I wanted to cup his face and kiss him. The thought of a kiss jerked me out of my trance and I let go of him. 

“Like I said, finish your interviews and leave.” He straightened out the black tunic he was wearing, dusting himself off. The silver crucifix on his chest caught a shimmer of light and reflected it, reminding me painfully that Duo was a man of the church, despite his flaws… but who was I to accuse someone of not being perfect? I had my own share of mistakes and flaws. This time, I watched his retreating back and I wished I could run after him. I wished I could promise everything was going to be all right… but I just couldn’t.

Solo waited for me in the living room, along with the boy who had broken the chair. He had an extremely guilty look on his face. Sister Helen had comforted him, telling him that it wasn’t his fault, but he watched me with great apprehension while I fixed the chair. The other children came to sit in a huge circle around me. As soon as I had finished, Katherine asked me to repair a toy train, which only needed a few tweaks to get the wooden wheels rolling again. Not soon thereafter, Sister Helen, albeit hesitantly, asked me if I could please take a look at that leaky faucet and the stuck window on the first floor? She couldn’t pay me of course, but if I wanted to stay for dinner..? I declined her kind offer and told her I’d be happy to do whatever she asked me to. My adoptive father had taught me a lot about repairing stuff like this, and my technical skills had proven quite handy in my life. If anything, keeping my hands busy made sure I couldn’t say something stupid, especially when a certain Father was involved.

\-------------------------------------

My time on L2 was coming to an end, fast. Quatre had given me one week, including time to write the first draft of my book. I had much material to organize; I had divided my notes into in chapters and I was satisfied with the general outline. However, I was going to need a lot more time than the remaining two days to sort through it all and actually start writing. Two days… and I still wanted to talk to Duo. I wanted to do more than just ‘talk’ to Duo. I couldn’t get him out of my head. I wanted to help him, but how? He thought I was going to leave soon anyway. He was under the impression that I was only interested in him and the church to get more material for my book. What were his words? He didn’t need a hero… what did he mean by that? Duo wasn’t a damsel in distress, he could take care of himself. On the other hand, there was only so much that one person could deal with.

I knew what it was like to be alone all the time. My adoptive father raised me to be a very independent person, but I discovered that even someone like me needed someone to talk to. I found a good friend in Quatre and through him, I met Trowa and Wufei. Even though we didn’t talk to each other that often, we kept in touch and we regarded each other as friends. But to feel something so personal, such a… belonging, a strange kind of longing… no, I never felt like that before. It wasn’t the hormones. I wasn’t thinking of any physical… interaction right now. It was Duo himself, something about him, something that he was, who he was, that made me feel attracted to him. Yes, he was handsome, I couldn’t deny that, but I’ve never been the kind of person to go for the exterior only. Duo was more than a pretty face. I had to muster up all of my strength and talk to him, no matter what. As my feet brought me back to Maxwell Church, I thought that I’d rather outrun a stomping Gundam again than face the man I was falling head over heels for. He wasn’t very happy with me to start with, and why should I ever think he would reciprocate? He’d probably toss me out of the church.

\-----------------------------------

I greeted Sister Helen and the kids, who weren’t surprised at all to see me again, and went straight to Duo’s office. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.

“Enter!” 

He was standing behind his desk, as rigid as a ruler. Duo was slightly smaller than me, but the ink black garb he wore made him look taller. His desk was empty, safe for a rectangular, small object that I easily recognized. A flash drive.

“Duo, what’s this?”

“You’re right.”

“About what?”

“About whatever it is that you think about me. I’m a thief, and I always have been. I never thought that my… skills would come in handy someday.”

“What’s on the flash drive?” I couldn’t help but ask. Duo put his finger on it and shoved it towards me.

“You’re a reporter,” he said and the bitterness in his voice unsettled me. “So, report. Rebels on L2 are building mobile suits. You’ll find the plans and schematics on this flash drive. You can tell the world that our reputation is true: a bunch of warmongering rebels who perpetuate the desolation the colony is in, and I’m a part of it.”

“That’s not the truth. You didn’t steal it for your own profit.” I refused to believe his words. “Unless you hide a mobile suit factory underneath the church?” 

A tight smile. “He promised me milk,” was all he said. I didn’t understand it at first. “Real milk. Not the watered down, artificial crap that’s been sold for extremely high prices here.”

“The children.”

“They can’t thrive on molded bread and stale water, Heero.” He didn’t look at me. “Milk and potatoes. Apples and oranges, maybe even strawberries. Clothes, books and toys. A whole shipment of goods for the children, in exchange for this flash drive.” Duo shifted his position and the silver crucifix once again caught a glimpse of the sun and blinked at me. His hand went to the piece of jewelry, his fingers stroking the object. “Did you know this was the first thing I ever stole? I nicked it from an old man, dressed in black. I figured he was just stupid for wearing jewelry in public.”

“Father Maxwell,” I took a guess. Duo’s gaze turned melancholic. 

“I ran away with it, totally excited,” he continued. “But before I reached the end of the street, I… lost all my energy. I halted and looked over my shoulder. He was just standing there, and he was… smiling at me. No yelling, no screaming, no curse words or condemnation. I never felt so ashamed, and I went back to him. He didn’t even hold out his hand when I wanted to return the crucifix.”

I waited for him to finish his story. “He told me that it would suit me much better.” A snort. “I just stood there and listened to him telling me about some Lord and Savior, but all that I remember was his promise that if I went with him, I would get a hot meal. I hadn’t had hot food for as long as I lived. Next thing I know, I’m in charge of the church.”

A moment of silence, but not uncomfortable. “What happened to him?” I asked, cautiously. 

“He died.” A blank look on his face and a neutral tone to his voice. “He was an old man. He already lived longer than many of the colonists.”

“He was your friend,” I said. Duo stared out of the window.

“I guess so. I didn’t regard him as my father, or anything sentimental like that. But he was kind, open, and trusting. I tried to do the same.”

“The children love you,” I reminded him. “You’re everything to them.”

“Maybe.” Duo sounded doubtful. “When the Father died, he asked me to continue his work, without pressuring me. He wanted someone to be there for the children, to give support, to provide them with a safe place. The church was a steady roof over my head and I knew by then, if I had continued my ways, I’d either end up a criminal boss or dead on the streets. Before he died, he asked me to believe in God. He would show me the way.”

“And do you? Believe in God, that is?”

Another snort. “There’s only one God I believe in,” Duo said. “I’ve seen so much destruction and death around me. It’s much easier to believe in the God of Death than God himself.”

I didn’t know what to answer. Duo gave the flash drive another shove so it teetered on the edge of the desk.

“Take it. You’ll have a real scoop on your hands, Heero. The names of everyone involved with the rebel upraise.”

“Including the name of the guy who visited you earlier?”

He didn’t seem surprised about me knowing. “Quinze,” Duo said. “He calls himself a ‘mediator’, He’s on the government’s payroll as an advisor; in reality, he’s the leader of a group called the White Fang. He has gained followers all over the colonies, but the core of his activities is concentrated on L2. White Fang wants to build mobile dolls for something they call ‘Operation Meteor’. The details are on the flash drive. I don’t know the details, as I don’t have a computer to read out the data.”

“And how did Quinze get to you?”

“He knew my reputation.” Duo crossed his arms in front of his chest. His posture was straight and strong, yet he looked vulnerable. I was dying to stand behind him, wrap my arms around him and tell him that everything was going to be all right. “I’ve always been a thief, Heero. I know what I did, was wrong... but it helped me to feed and clothe the children, and ironically enough, to keep them off the streets so they wouldn’t follow into my footsteps. I want them to believe that kindness, sharing and helping each other is the right way of living, instead of stealing and thieving. Quinze has money and he knows his way around. He approached me to steal a couple of documents, and it was easy enough. When I brought him the documents, he arranged for a shipment of powdered milk.” He finally turned his head around to look at me. “You should’ve seen their faces, Heero. The kids had never seen milk before! They were afraid to drink it, not knowing what it was!”

My heart raced as I closed the distance between us. He didn’t step away from me. This was his moment to tell his story, and I listened with rapt fascination. “The next shipment was apples,” Duo said. “Along with crates of assorted vegetables and potatoes, even frozen chicken! Sister Helen suggested we’d roast it over the open fire place. We ate with our hands and everyone was covered in grease, but we had so much fun, and it tasted so good!” He turned to me, eyes sparkling with mirth before they turned dark, but not mistrusting. “Now I’ve become Quinze’s lapdog, stealing for him what he wants. I’m caught between government, police and White Fang. All I want is for the children to be safe. I did what I had to do… what I have to do. I’ll answer to God’s judgment when it’s my time, not to someone else’s.”

“You’re so strong,” I said.

“I’m a survivor, like everyone else around here.”

I ached to touch his face, to brush that wayward strand of hair away from his cheek. “You survived on your own for so long. What would the children do without you?”

“Sister Helen’s still here.”

“She’s looking up to you, Duo. There’s such a heavy burden on your shoulders.”

“I don’t see it as such.” He tilted his head a little. I could deduce from the look in his eyes that he expected me to tell something about myself, and so I did. After all, he had opened up to me, and it wouldn’t be fair to not return the gesture. So I told him that I grew up without knowing my mother and that my adoptive father was a good person, but none too bright in the empathic department. We never really bonded as father and son and he left me starving for attention. When I got a hug from my first boyfriend years and years ago, I didn’t realize what he was doing, why the guy I loved was putting his arms around me. Before I knew it, I was telling Duo about my crush on unreachable men, like Zechs Merquise. 

“The brother of the Queen of the World,” Duo said. “You have ambitions, Heero.”

“I should’ve known better,” I said. “He was, and still is, in a firm relationship with Lucrezia Noin. I know exactly what to look for, but apparently, not _where_ to look.”

“You work hard,” Duo said. “You’re honest and you have a lot of skills. You’re a good party for anyone.”

“Yeah.” I shrugged awkwardly. I knew who I wanted to be a party for, and he was standing right in front of me. Another moment of silence. I could tell that something was bothering Duo, and I guessed it was me standing so close to him. “I really didn’t want you to…I didn’t want to bother you,” I said.

He looked up, a quizzical look on his face. “What do you mean?”

“That night, when I caught you in the act. I shouldn’t have stalked you. I probably hurt you back then…”

He made a dismissive gesture. “I guess any thief, no matter how good, sooner or later gets caught. It was just a matter of time.”

“You did what you had to do,” I said, repeating his words. “These are extreme circumstances. We’ll find a way to help the children.”

“ _We_?”

“I want to help,” I said. “With your story and my book, I can ask for international aid. When Earth and the other colonies learn of the full story of L2 and understand what’s going on, they’ll reach out to you!”

Duo inclined his head just a little and I couldn’t help myself; I reached for him and brushed a few strands away. He shivered and I immediately withdrew my hand. He didn’t turn away though, nor did he tell me to leave.

“It’s too late,” he said, voice low. “Maybe your book will gather interest, but then what? Life will go on, Earth will move on, and the colonies are too far apart to really care. A book won’t stop Quinze or the government. It doesn’t matter. I already made my choice by giving you this flash drive. I had to deliver it two hours ago at the agreed rendez-vous point. He’s probably flaming mad. I don’t know what he’s going to do.”

“I’ll stay,” I offered immediately. 

“You don’t want to stay with me.” Duo’s voice was curt and his face showed that cold, hard mask I had seen before: when he was talking to Quinze. “This is dangerous, Heero. Take the flash drive and leave. Write your book. Tell our story, my story, and show it to the world as you see fit. Go back to your safe home on Earth.”

“I’ll go,” I said, gauging his reaction. A mixture of relief and… disappointment? washed over his face. “I’ll go to my hotel, pack up my stuff and come back to you right away.”

“Heero..! You can’t!”

“Yes I can, and yes I will,” I said, stubbornly. “This Quinze isn’t going to hurt you or the children.”

“You can’t protect us all,” he protested.

“And you can’t shoulder all these problems on your own. I’ll be back soon, all right?”

“No. Go home, Heero. Write your book-”

“I don’t want to hear it,” I said and as he was so close, I could smell him. I could count the strands of his hair; I could count his eyelashes, framing those amazing eyes. I could… kiss him. The thought crossed my mind while I was already pressing my lips on his, boldly and… well, sort of invading. I actually expected him to plant his elbow in my stomach the way he had done when I had caught him red-handed. Duo broke up the kiss, albeit not hurriedly. He turned his head and my lips ended up on his cheek. Was he embarrassed? 

“Go, Heero,” he said, his voice low. My heart fell. I had overstepped boundaries, and now he was sending me away. I didn’t want to leave before apologizing. As soon as I opened my mouth, he said: “Go, and come back right away.”

\-------------------------------------

I rushed back to the spaceport hotel to retrieve my belongings: clothes, the camera, my notes. The gruff receptionist, who had checked me in on my first night on L2, looked particularly bored.

“I’m checking out,” I told him, “and I need to send a message to Earth, so get an interstellar secured line ready.”

“That’s going to cost you,” he hollered after me as I ran up the stairs.

“You know I’ve got a credit card!” I hollered back irritably, as I didn’t want to waste one more second of my precious time. I had to inform Quatre that I was going to stay a little while longer on L2. Through the years, I had built up an impressive amount of paid time off, which I rarely ever took - work was my life. Quatre hopefully wouldn’t mind my spontaneous action. The moment I opened the door to my room and switched on the light, I busted out a string of expletives I didn’t know I had in me. The entire room had been trashed! Every piece of furniture had been turned upside down, the mattress cut open and the floor littered with my handwritten notes, crumpled and discarded. I picked them up, muttering more expletives under my breath. What kind of asshole had thrashed my room? He, or they, had meticulously searched my clothes, my toiletries - as if a bottle of aftershave contained precious information about me - and my notes, fortunately not tearing them in half. 

I grabbed everything and stuffed it into my suitcase. The notes contained the interviews with the adults and children from the church; I hadn’t gotten around writing Duo’s story down yet. I had the feeling Duo’s story wasn’t the main goal to ransack my room. The Nikon perhaps, to exchange for credits on the black market? I found the slightly damaged camera underneath a pile of towels and tossed it in the suitcase. There was nothing left for me to do here, so I left my room and stomped down the stairs. As I reached the reception desk, I slammed my fist down, not in the mood for chit-chat.

“Is the interstellar secured line ready?”

I received a dirty look, but the man handed me the communication device that established secured lines and I punched in my verification code. I hadn’t bothered to check the time zone difference and I was immediately transferred to the voicemail of Quatre’s secretary; it was midnight on Earth. I left a message and disconnected the line.

“Checking out, huh?” The man started to write on a piece of paper. “Three nights, communication service…”

“I won’t pay the charges,” I said brusquely. He looked up.

“Excuse me?”

“Someone has wrecked the room, turning everything upside down and inside out,” I continued. “It wasn’t housekeeping. You’re damn lucky that I’m not suing your ass.”

I would’ve laughed at his fake wide-eyed-surprised-look in any other circumstances, but right now I was in a hurry. I wanted to get back to the church and Duo was more important than this guy. “I don’t know how much they bribed you with,” I said, “but I’m sure it’s enough to cover my expenses.”

“Hey, it doesn’t work that way,” he whined. “If you damaged your room…”

“Do you have too much wax in your ears? I didn’t trash the room, someone else did!” I thought I saw a flicker of fear in the man’s eyes. “If you want to sue _me_ , you know where to find me.” I had given him one of my business cards when I registered for the room. 

“You just can’t leave like that, man,” he said, his eyes darting back and forth. He grated me on my nerves.

“Feel free to call the police, or whatever law-enforcing clique you have around here,” I said disdainfully. Another flicker of fear and now I took pity on him, albeit not too much. There was a possibility that he hadn’t been bribed, but threatened. If Quinze’s men had done this, he probably wouldn’t have stood much of a chance. I steeled myself. I would deal with this guy and whatever concerning the hotel, later. Without another word, I left - and he didn’t dare to call after me.

\-----------------------------------------

When I arrived at the church, I spotted Quinze before he saw me. He was surrounded by burly men, grinning sadistically like a bunch of brain-dead goons with enough muscles to ram their way through a wall. My eyes scanned the area for Duo and my heart plummeted when I saw him lying on the ground, his back turned to me, at the entrance of the church. Solo and Katherine stood in front of him, their faces contorted, smudges and tears on their cheeks. Solo shook his fists at the burly guys, his expression a dark cloud of unadulterated hatred and anger. Katherine held her hands up high and clawed, ready to fight. The rest of the children, along with Sister Helen, stood to the side, huddled together. The nun did her best to keep them calm, speaking in a hushed tone of voice. Duo didn’t move, but I could see that he was breathing. My heart turned into a block of ice, filled with disdain and anger towards the ones who had hurt my Duo.

“What’s going on here?” I called out, with as much authority as I could muster.

Quinze and his goons turned to me, as if they had all the time in the world. In a split second, one of the guys’ vests lifted up slightly and I saw the unmistakable contours of a gun. 

“Ah, Heero,” Quinze said, casually confirming that he and his men had been in my hotel room.

“Heero Yuy, Earth Alliance Press,” I stated for good measure. “I work for the Global Press, owned by Quatre Raberba Winner. State your business, Quinze.”

He wasn’t surprised that I knew his name. His right eye slightly twitched in annoyance when I dropped Quatre’s name; my boss was widely known, even in the colonies and just for a moment Quinze showed a little bit of apprehension. It was gone the next second. 

“My business is with the Father here,” he said. “I’d advise you to stay out of it.”

“The Father is a personal friend,” I said. “If there’s a problem, I’d be happy to help.” I had to get Sister Helen and the children out of here. I had to make sure that Duo was all right. As soon as I took a step towards the church, Quinze’s bodyguards blocked my way. I growled. The physical strength of these jerks far surpassed mine, I would lose in combat. Besides, one of them was packing a gun, and I was sure his friend would carry a weapon as well; if it wasn’t a gun, it would be a knife. My anger wasn’t enough to win this battle. My body was shaking in barely suppressed rage. If I couldn’t fight them, I had to outsmart them, but how? The next moment, I heard some rustling and a soft groan; it was Duo, getting up from the ground. 

“The matter is already settled.” His voice was hoarse. Carefully, he moved his hands to search for balance as he got up. I gasped at the difficulty of his movements. Had these goons broken his bones? I tried to make eye contact. He showed me a sickly grin, split lip and all. “I gave back what I owed him.” The flash drive.

“The Father knows that it’s not sufficient,” Quinze said. “He knows that…”

“Sister, would you be as kind as to take the children inside?” I interrupted him. The nun, face fear-stricken, was relieved to see me. Solo took a step forward, about to lash out. 

“Solo, you’ll help, won’t you? Take your brothers and sisters back inside, and stay there. Katherine, you too, right?”

Both children looked at me, insecure. Duo made a shooing gesture, showing a smile that could’ve fooled me into believing that everything was all right. Finally, the children did as they were told and along with Sister Helen, moved back into the church. To my relief, Quinze let them go; he didn’t call for his bodyguards to harass them. The men took a defensive stance when Duo descended the stairs and came to stand next to me. I was sickened by their ‘loyalty’ to their boss, and my anger flared up when I saw the bruises on his face. What had these goons done to him?

“Well, mister reporter,” Quinze said tonelessly, “your personal friend here hasn’t kept himself to his word. A man of God, who steals and lies!”

“I never lie!” Duo protested. 

“You didn’t show up at the arranged rendez-vous point,” Quinze snarled. “You broke our arrangement. For all the trouble you caused me, you’re going to have to pay!”

“You got what you wanted,” Duo said. “Now leave!”

“No, it’s not going to be that easy. _You’re_ not getting away that easy. I’ve been nothing but a good provider to you, and you repay me like this? We had agreed to a shipment of milk, bread and fresh vegetables for the children; you can forget about it.”

“Asshole,” I said. “You heard him! Leave!”

“Heero, the children,” Duo said, downtrodden. I understood: a whole shipment of food was a big loss. 

“We’ll think of a way,” I told him. Quinze made a gesture and the two goons pulled out their guns. “No!”

“You seem like a fit and able young man,” Quinze said, grinning as his men pointed their guns at Duo. “The Father has done his work. Now it’s time for _you_ to do something for me.”

“Why would I do something for you?” I asked, incredulously.

“Because if you don’t, the Father is going to meet his Maker,” Quinze answered coolly. “Now, there’s a factory close by. On the outside, it looks like any regular processing plant, but it’s a secret hideout where the first prototype mobile doll has been build. You’ll steal that prototype and bring it back to us.”

“Heero, no!” Duo took a step forward, but froze on the spot when the goons cocked their guns. He turned to me. “This is how it all starts! One thing leads to another, and he’ll never be satisfied. It’s extortion! You don’t owe him a thing! It’s not worth it, Heero. You’re right, we’ll think of a way. There has to be another way!”

My stomach tied itself into knots. Two guns pointed to his head, and Quinze wouldn’t hesitate to give the command to fire. I commended Duo for not panicking, in fact it was disturbing to see how calm he was while being held at gunpoint. Maybe he was reconciled with dying on the spot, but I wasn’t. Slowly, I turned to Quinze and dropped my voice until below freezing point.

“If I bring you that prototype…then you’ll leave and never come back?”

Quinze showed me a calculating grin. “More so, I’ll give you that shipment of food for the kids, per our prior agreement.”

Duo grabbed my arm, his movement so fast that it was a miracle the bodyguards didn’t act upon their reflexes to pull the trigger. “Heero, if you get caught, no press card will save your life.”

“Where’s the factory?” I said, gently shaking his hand off. I could only hope that my calm composure would reassure him, somehow. I could do this. Quinze looked like a cat that ate the canary, ensured of his victory. I wanted to wipe that smirk off of his face. 

“My my, if I knew you’d agree so soon, I would’ve asked for more. As it is, bringing me that prototype will do. The factory is just four blocks from here. You’ve got until midnight. We’ll stay here to take good care of the Father.”

“Don’t you dare lay a finger on him,” I said. Quinze wasn’t impressed.

“Heero, no,” Duo said again. “You…”

“We all go inside,” Quinze interrupted him, “except for our cunning reporter, that is. Come gentlemen, let’s enjoy the hospitality of Maxwell Church, shall we?”

The bodyguards snickered like lunatics as they both grabbed Duo at the upper arm and all but dragged him away from me. He managed to throw one more look over his shoulder, his eyes filled with guilt, fear and frustration. I was abandoned right in front of the church. The massive wooden door was closed shut; the silence surrounding me was eerie and cold. If I wanted Duo, Sister Helen and the children to be safe, I had no choice but to do what Quinze had ‘asked’ me to do. A mobile suit prototype in the hands of this man was going to create more trouble… ‘Operation Meteor’, as Duo had called it. If only I had taken that flash drive from him, so Quinze would’ve come after me. Instead, I had left it on his desk, so caught up in kissing him that it had slipped my mind. Stupid, stupid!

\-------------------------------------------

Four blocks was a minor distance and I could already see the tall chimneys of the processing plant looming over the streets. I quickened my pace while my mind raced a thousand miles a minute. Duo was right; my press card might give me some leeway on Earth or the other colonies, but not on L2. The authorities would ban me, if I didn’t have to serve jail time first. Not being able to visit L2 wasn’t an option; I couldn’t live without Duo. He wouldn’t go anywhere without the children, so I had to make sure not to get caught. Duo was right about Quinze, of course: this was extortion. Hiring muscle, holding a gun to someone’s head and having no qualms about denying food to children… what kind of man was he? Duo had told me that the flash drive contained all kinds of incriminating material, but now it was back in Quinze’s possession. I was in trouble, Duo was in trouble, and I didn’t have any proof because I had failed to take the flash drive.

I decided to concentrate on my ‘task’ at hand. The processing plant was right around the corner and my first problem was how to get in. The factory, its name eroded from the building, was surrounded by a steep, huge wall, at least thrice my height. As it wasn’t midnight yet, I still had a couple of hours, which I used to check for the entrance, the exits, any guards, escape routes and so on. The building looked deserted to me. The entrance gate was closed. No truck or workers went in or out. This plant wasn’t in use anymore. I took my time checking and checking the building again. In my job as a reporter, the first rule I learned was to always look past the first impression. Never judge a book by its cover. Anyone else would’ve walked away empty-handed, but I was going inside and investigate. Who knew what kind of illegal operations were going on? Quinze had mentioned this processing plant in particular and according to Duo, the man had a substantial network. He had to have information from reliable sources, otherwise he wouldn’t have send me to this place. After ransacking my hotel room, he probably had learned of my reputation. On the other hand, he’d shown slight apprehension when I mentioned Quatre. I mentally berated myself. Focus! Quinze and his background would have to wait. Right now, I had a prototype to retrieve, but I didn’t have much information to work with. The factory was as silent and spooky as a grave. If there was any rebel activity, it had to be underground. Nightfall was settling in and no windows lit up at the factory. At least there wasn’t any nightshift… but I hadn’t seen any dayshift either. I felt relieved and burdened at the same time.

This was going to be difficult. Why had Quinze asked me to do this? Could it be that he had performed a background check on me? If so, he would know I was capable of piloting a mobile suit. Well, piloting… when I was writing an article about the Gundams years ago, I had operated the controls of a Leo, just to get acquainted with it. Duo didn’t have that kind of knowledge or experience and it wasn’t like he could put a mobile suit prototype in his pants pocket. That asshole Quinze had played his game well; through Duo, he could get to me and through me, he could get his precious prototype. Fuck! Taking a deep breath, I checked my watch. It wasn’t completely dark yet, but I needed time to locate the prototype and get it out of the factory. If I took too long, Quinze was going to do who know what to Duo and the children. I couldn’t wait for it to be completely dark. As there were hardly any bystanders, I walked up to the gate. I knew how to pick a lock, but to my surprise, it wasn’t necessary. When I pulled the metal handle, the gate went open with a rattling noise. It was ridiculous. I crossed the terrain with designated parking spots for the board of directors (overgrown, no car had been parked there for years) and unreadable signs, probably for delivering cargo. No one stopped me. There _was_ no one to stop me. As I approached the building, I could see the broken windows, the graffiti on the walls and the vandalized doors. I was severely tempted to return to the church and tell Quinze where he could shove it. The thought of failing this ‘mission’ and consequently endangering Duo and the children withheld me from doing so. I went inside. The main hall was huge and empty, safe for a few iron bars and metal grates lying on the floor. Even the ventilation pipes and inner isolation had been stripped off clean; for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what had been processed at this factory. It didn’t really matter. I started looking for concealed doors, trap doors, anything that would lead to a secret room where the prototype would be. I cursed Quinze and I cursed myself.

I didn’t have a flash light and it was getting dark quickly. I picked up one of the iron bars in case I would need it as a weapon. For an hour, I wandered around the factory hall and crossed it to search the offices. No indication of a cellar, no sounds, just a few squeaky rats. I was wasting time. What was I supposed to do? I was making a fool of myself and Quinze was probably laughing at me. He was _mocking_ me. There was nothing at this factory. There was no one here. The only footprints in the dust were mine. This was a wild goose chase, and for what? I looked outside, at the artificial moon. Its light was none too bright and I felt completely alone in this silence, in this darkness, in this goddamn empty factory. Dark clouds covered large parts of the moon, reducing the weak light even more. Annoyed, I turned around to leave, until realization hit me. L2 was a colony with artificial day and night routine, controlled by an intricate climate system. A system that kept the entire colony at a perfect temperature: a mixture of warmth and humidity. A system that didn’t know ‘rain’ or ‘clouds’. It was smoke, and it came from the direction of the church! I dropped the metal bar and ran. I ran like the devil was at my heels and I left the factory behind me. The distinctive scent of fire was already in the air and I ran. My legs protested, my lungs labored to keep up and I almost stumbled, yet I kept running. 

Four blocks had never seemed so far away before.


	3. Chapter 3

I ran around the corner and skidded to a halt. Smoke clouded my sight and burned up my lungs, already elaborating from the running exertion. I cried out loud, an incoherent roar, as panic and despair got a hold of me. The church was on fire, heavy black clouds curling up to the sky, the building scorched by the intense heat. I couldn’t move; my body refused to obey me. All I could see was that terrifying smoke, the insanely high flames and the vibrating, hot air. If it wasn’t for Sister Helen calling out my name, I would’ve been standing still forever, staring at the drama in front of me, unable to grasp control. I broke out of my trance and hurried over to her. She coughed wildly and I grabbed her at the arms. 

“Sister! Where’s Duo?” I yelled.

“He went inside to get Katherine and Solo,” she wheezed at me. I quickly did a headcount of the children, crying and upset, clinging to the nun. Katherine and Solo were missing, and Duo. I trusted her to keep the children with her and I ran into the church. If Quinze had done this, I was going to fucking kill him! I ripped off the sleeve of my shirt and tied it around the lower half of my face, covering my nose and mouth. My eyes started to water from the smoke and I called out Duo’s name, again and again. The roaring flames made it hard to hear any answer and I kept calling for Duo, until a weak “Here! Over here!” reached my ears. I followed the sound of Duo’s voice and I found him on the floor in the living room. Katherine and Solo were in his lap, both had their eyes closed. I ran towards him.

“Too heavy,” Duo heaved. “I couldn’t carry them no more.” His face and hair was covered with black streaks and much to my relief, I couldn’t discover any burn wounds on him or the children. I reached for the boy. 

“I’ll take Solo,” I said, assuming that he was heavier. “You take Katherine, all right?”

He nodded and wrapped his arms around the girl. He lifted himself up from the floor, albeit with difficulty, and it took him precious time to start moving. I carried Solo and left the living room, the toxic smoke biting into my skin and bones. I could hear the massive support beams creak and all around, the stone building crumbled and fell apart. “Hurry, hurry!” The adrenaline pumped through my body. Visibility had severely decreased; I was navigating purely by memory. 

“Watch out for the debris!” I stepped over some rubble, barely avoiding tripping over it. Sweat dripped over my face. The smoke penetrated my makeshift mask and crept up through my nose, irritating the tender tissue. Solo weighed heavier with every second and I worried about his non-responsive state. The boy felt like lead in my arms and his eyes were closed; I had to get everyone out, fast! When I was about to go to the right, I looked over my shoulder, to see if Duo was following me. To my horror, I couldn’t see him - and it wasn’t because of the smoke. He just wasn’t behind me! I tracked my steps back to the living room, tears running down my face from the heat and smoke. I had trouble finding him, until I saw a black mass on the floor, with a hint of pink - Katherine’s skirt. Duo had protectively curled himself around the girl, his arms covering her body. 

“Duo!” I shook him roughly while holding Solo awkwardly. “Duo! Say something!”

He opened his eyes and immediately started to cough. “Take her,” he said and pushed Katherine towards me. She was just as limp as Solo. “Take her, Heero!”

“No!” I didn’t mean ‘no’ as if I didn’t want to rescue the girl, I meant ‘no’ as in ‘I can’t carry all three of you, now get up!’ Duo was in no condition to walk, let alone run out of the building. How long had he been exposed to the smoke? Sister Helen had told me that he had rescued the children first… I still had some stamina left in me, adrenaline pumping through my veins, almost making me feel invincible. I grabbed Katherine and locked eyes with Duo. The resigned look he gave me, send shivers down my spine, despite the blistering heat closing in on us. 

“Don’t you give up on me,” I said, even though I wasn’t sure he could understand me. The roaring flames drowned out any other sound and my mouth was covered up by my makeshift mask. I couldn’t waste another second. The adrenaline gave me wings. I took Katherine with me, along with Solo, and I made a run for it. When I got outside, Sister Helen cried out in joy and relief. She embraced me and the children before I had the chance to lay them down.

“Sister, please, I have to hurry!” I shifted Katherine from my arms to the nun’s, making sure that she could carry the weight. Carrying Solo myself, I followed Sister Helen to the group of children, all huddled together at a safe distance from the burning church. The scared and insecure faces haunted me as I laid Solo down, the boy still limp and motionless. I straightened myself and turned around to leave. The Sister grabbed me at the elbow.

“It’s too dangerous!” 

“Duo’s still inside,” I said. She shook her head, crying.

“Please! We can’t lose the both of you!”

“You won’t,” I promised her. Her grip barely held any strength and I gently broke myself free by simply removing her hand. I tried to give her a reassuring look, but she averted her head, focusing her attention on Solo and Katherine. I couldn’t afford to dawdle, so I ran back into the church. As soon as I entered the building, I swayed on my feet. The heat blazed all around me, overwhelming, like hell had opened its mouth and tried to swallow me whole. I needed precious seconds to get myself together. More debris had fallen down and it was a miracle the last of the support beams hadn’t given out yet. The ceiling could collapse any moment. I moved forward, returning to the spot where I had last seen Duo. He was still there, to my relief; for some reason I had been afraid he had gotten up and walked away… or that I would’ve found something my mind didn’t even want to think of. 

“Duo,” I called his name, but he didn’t answer. I slung him over my shoulders, aghast at his shockingly light weight. A loud creaking noise told me that the support beam was about to give way. I had no more time to lose, but suddenly my body refused to obey me. My knees buckled and I hunched over, coughing madly. The adrenaline wore off and I started to shake. I couldn’t give in, not now! _Move, Yuy! Just fucking move, or you’ll both die here!_ I tightened my grip on Duo and put one foot forward. Wobbling, I managed to move my other foot. My mind was screaming and yelling at me to hurry up. My makeshift mask was drenched with smoke and saliva and I was biting on a piece of the fabric. 

I had to keep calm and find my way back. My vision was hindered by the heavy smoke and I patted the wall, if only to keep going into the right direction. The stones were hot and I hissed every time my skin touched the scorching surface. Panting and wheezing, I carried Duo outside the church and tripped when I went down the steps. Duo slipped from my shoulder and I smacked against the ground. Many small hands tugged at me and Duo and I mustered up the last of my strength. Along with the children and Sister Helen, I was able to drag myself and Duo across the stone plaza to get to a safe distance from the burning church. The deafening noises behind me were a tell-tale sign that the building collapsed. The children chanted Duo’s name, tugging at him.

“Where are the paramedics?” I yelled at no one in particular.

“Paramedics?” Sister Helen looked at me, sad and shocked. “They won’t come for us, Heero. We need to walk to the hospital.” 

“For crying out loud! What kind of godforsaken colony does fucking nothing for its denizens, not even emergency services?”

She didn’t bother correcting my language and coughed; a painful, wheezing cough. Duo wasn’t the only one in need of medical attention. 

“Who can walk?” I asked.

“We can manage,” Sister Helen said. She stood up and I could see how much strength and effort it took her. A lot of people had flocked together to look and point at the burning church and I yelled at the crowd.

“Do something! These children are suffering, and you’re standing around and _watching_?” Finally, a woman detached herself from the crowd and walked up to one of the children. She looked over her shoulder to the rest of the bystanders. “Come on! Do something!” She said as she picked up the child. “We all have some food and clothes to spare for these children! Come on, people!”

To my relief, her words set the crowd into motion. More people came forward: mostly women, some of them even crying. The group of children was a ghastly sight, all huddled together, crying and sobbing, clothing scorched and their skin covered with soot. As far as I could see, none of the children were injured, safe for Katherine and Solo, who still hadn’t opened their eyes. The sound of wailing sirens in the distance was a welcome one; not even the less-than-competent L2 government would skimp on a fire department on a space colony; the risk of the fire spreading and destroying the entire colony was just too great. A large, burly man approached me and I growled like a wild animal when he wanted to take Duo from me. He stepped away from me, raising his hands in defense.

“Where’s the hospital?” I barked at him.

“That way,” he pointed to the east. “Are you able to carry him all the way?”

He was right. I had reached my limit. I had to admit temporary defeat, no matter how much I disliked it. Sister Helen touched me at the elbow. “We’ll go together,” she said. Next to her, two other guys had picked up Solo and Katherine and they looked at me as if they were awaiting my approval. 

“Let’s go,” I said and in a macabre procession of people carrying or supporting coughing, wheezing and injured people, we went on our way to the hospital.

\----------------------------------------

After everything that had happened, my expectations of L2’s medical facilities weren’t that high. I was proven wrong as soon as the doors to the hospital opened: the nursing staff was quick and efficient, taking Solo and Katherine to separate rooms immediately. The equipment might not be state of the art, but the compassion and involvement of the doctors and nurses were genuine. Sister Helen was whisked away and Duo was put on a gurney. I thanked the man who had carried him, and he wished me all the best. I wanted to stay with Duo, but one of the nurses stopped me when they wheeled him into one of the treatment rooms.

“I’m sorry, you can’t come along,” she said. “We don’t want any contamination and you need to be looked after as well. A doctor will see you soon.”

“No,” I shook my head, “I want to be with him.”

“I understand, but it’s against the rules,” she said firmly. “Besides, you look like you’re going to collapse any moment now.” She followed the direction I looked into; I caught one more glimpse of Duo on the gurney, before the door closed. “You saved his life.” 

“No,” I said. “He saved mine.”

She looked quizzically at me. Now wasn’t the time for explanation or elaboration, and she didn’t ask. The nurse stood her ground firmly, refusing me access. I felt alone; without the children, Sister Helen or Duo around me, I felt like I was standing in a swamp and slowly sinking.

“You’re a hero,” the nurse praised me. “Now sit down and let a doctor take a look at you.”

I obeyed. What else could I do? I was exhausted, my body shaking. I slumped into one of the plastic seats. My thoughts went immediately back to the church, the factory, Quinze and his men. That bastard had set me up from the start. He wanted me, a nosy reporter from Earth, out of the way and he had probably hoped that I’d break my neck at the factory. Who knew what he had in store for me, if I hadn’t left as soon as I noticed the smoke clouds. He was going to pay. I would find a way to publish about his foul deeds and expose his corrupt bonds with the L2 government. If I couldn’t kill him with my bare hands, I would kill his reputation and run him into the ground! My breathing evened out. It was so tempting to get a little rest. I’d been up and running ever since I had arrived at the church, before all hell broke loose…   
Someone touched my shoulder and I shot up straight in my chair.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you!” The young nurse took a step back. I needed a few seconds to realize where I was and gawked at her before it dawned to me that I was at the hospital. “The doctor will see you now. Follow me, please.”

I got up and shuffled slowly behind her, my body at the end of its strength.

“Take it easy,” the nurse said, patiently waiting for me. She tilted her head. “You came in with the Father, right?”

“Yes,” I said tiredly. “How is he?” 

“He’s going to need special treatment,” she said. “I heard the doctor say that the damage to his lungs is too great. We can’t offer much help to him.”

“I see,” I said, ignoring how my stomach plummeted. The nurse was obviously frustrated by the limited resources of the hospital. She opened the door to a room for me and I shuffled inside, aching all over. An elderly man in a doctor’s coat turned around and looked over the rim of his glasses at me.

“Thank you, nurse,” he said. “Well, let me take a look at you.”

“I’m fine,” I said stubbornly and dissolved into a coughing fit that almost had me doubling over. Without much ado, the doctor led me to the examination table and ordered me to take off my shirt. I discarded the garment and shivered at the touch of his ice-cold stethoscope. He was careful and thorough; he listened to my heart and lungs and tapped on my chest, ‘hmm’-ing all the time.

“What’s the verdict, doctor?” I asked lamely when he picked up a clipboard and wrote something down.

“You’re a very lucky young man,” he answered. “You should recover completely after a few days of rest.” He frowned at me. “A few days of _absolute_ rest. You don’t seem the kind of guy who likes to sit still, but in the best interest of your health, I advice you to rest.”

“Thank you.” I could do with some sleep, but first I had to know… “What about Duo? I mean, Father Maxwell?”

“I’m not in charge of his treatment,” the doctor said. “As far as I know, he wasn’t as lucky as you are. I can’t tell you much, I’m sorry.”

I thanked him once more and watched his retreating back. I had to call Quatre. He could help me.

\--------------------------------------

I wanted to spend the night at the hospital, preferably at Duo’s bed, but the previous nurse all but tossed me out. She was right, of course; I looked like hell and I needed to recover from the events. I also needed a shower and clean, new clothes; everything was covered with soot and the stench of the smoke hung around me. I had nothing on me except for my cell phone and my wallet with credit cards; the phone had short-circuited due to the heat and the credit cards were warped, the plastic blackened. I was in deep trouble. How was I supposed to find a place to stay? Agitated, I saw no other option but to ask the nurse if she knew a place; she recommended me a guesthouse close by the hospital, credits only. She offered to call the landlady, a long-time friend of her mother’s, and vouch for me. While she made the call, I realized one more thing: I didn’t know where my suitcase was. I had taken it with me when I left the hotel, but I had abandoned it at the church when I saw Quinze and his men. My notes, my clothes and my Nikon camera - packed in that darn suitcase, and I didn’t know where it was.

The nurse gave me directions and when I arrived at the guesthouse, the friendly landlady was already waiting for me. She ushered me inside and insisted I should take a shower first. She didn’t care if I used up all the hot water, she told me to get clean while she rummaged around for clothes. While I enjoyed the shower, I scrubbed the bar of soap all over my body to get rid of the stench of the smoke. I noticed my labored breathing. I was shaking. I had escaped death, I didn’t even have a burn wound. All the tension and the adrenaline had worn off and I almost sank to my knees. Duo. Sister Helen. The children. Now I understood Duo’s responsibility. It weighed like a ton on my shoulders, and he had carried this burden a great part of his life. 

Forcing myself upright, I turned off the shower and grabbed a towel, drying myself off with the rough cotton. There was no time to sit down and mope. I had to call Quatre, but I didn’t have any credits for an interstellar call. I owed it to the landlady’s kindness that I was able to get a room and a shower; how was I ever going to pay her? Duo… I wanted to be with him. I had to return to the hospital. Back in my room, I found a pile of clothes on the bed. Relieved, I dressed myself, not caring that the clothes didn’t really fit; they were too large. Tying the belt around the too wide jeans, I went downstairs, where I found the landlady dumping my scorched clothes into a bin.

“Maxwell Church, right?” She said, looking sad. “I’ve heard many stories about the Father, but he doesn’t deserve this. No one deserves this.”

“He’s not a thief!” I rushed to his defense, even though it technically wasn’t true. 

“I didn’t say I believed the stories,” she said calmly. “I’m old enough to discern between gossip, lies and utter bullshit.”

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, embarrassed. “I… need to go back to the hospital.”

“Have you had something to eat?” She asked me sharply. 

“No,” I answered truthfully. 

She wagged her finger at me. “You’re not leaving without some food in your stomach,” she said.   
“I raised three sons, so don’t think you can outsmart me. They tried every trick in the book and they all failed.”

“I’ve been to war zones,” I said, slightly crabby.

“I _live_ in a war zone,” she said, deadpan. “Do you think life’s easy here?”

“I’ve heard many stories at the church. I came to L2 to write a book about the situation here.”

“Then you know,” she simply said. At her gesture, I sat down at the kitchen table and she brought me a bowl of hearty soup. I noticed how hungry I actually was and she served me a second and a third helping without any word. I felt ashamed that I had tested this woman; she had shown nothing but kindness to me, in a stark contrast to the rest of the colony. She gave me a tall glass of water and I greedily emptied it. 

“Now you can go,” she said.

“Thank you,” I said. I plucked at the sleeve of the oversized shirt. “For the clothes…”

“Don’t worry about it. My sons aren’t around to wear them anymore.”

“Are they…?” I couldn’t get the words out of my mouth.

“No, not like that. They have left the colony and I’m not sure where they are. They dreamt of a better life, but I’m not sure if they’ve found it.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

She avoided my gaze and busied herself with the dirty dishes. 

“Do you know where I can make an interstellar call? I need to reach someone on Earth,” I asked her, changing the topic.

“The hospital has interstellar lines, but they’ll charge you an arm and a leg.”

“I’ll give it a try. Thank you once again,” I said and left the guesthouse.

\-------------------------------------

At the hospital, I first visited Sister Helen, confined to a bed. It was a very strange sight to see her without her usual habit and coif. I never knew she had shoulder-length, curly, blond hair that framed her pale face. Her eyes were all red and blotchy. According to doctor’s orders, she had to stay for at least two nights.

“Have you seen the Father?” 

I didn’t want to lie to the woman, but I didn’t want her to worry unnecessarily either. “I’m going to see him soon,” I said neutrally. “I wanted to know how you were doing, Sister.”

“You saved our lives.” She reached for my hand. “We lost everything but our hope and faith, Heero. With the Father sick, where are we supposed to go to?”

“The children are safe, taken in by good citizens,” I tried to reassure her as best as I could. “For now, they have a roof over their heads and food and clothing until we find a new place..   
a new church. You, Katherine, Solo and Duo need to focus on getting better.”

“What about you? Where are you staying, Heero? What did the doctor tell you?”

“I’m all right. Don’t worry about me.”

Leaning back in the pillows, she coughed a couple of times; a nasty, gut-wrenching sound. It was obvious she was exhausted. 

“Get some rest, Sister,” I said and patted her hand. She nodded, but her eyes were still on me as I left the room. I hurried to see Duo. 

 

He was awake and happy to see me, judging from his bright smile. It was worrisome that his eyes didn’t carry the same smile; I chalked it up to stress and discomfort. He allowed me to kiss him on the top of his head and I inhaled the scent of his hair: carbolic soap, that typical hospital smell. At least he was all clean from the soot and the dirt from the fire; unfortunately, his situation hadn’t improved. I was taken aback by how bad his breathing was and he couldn’t hide the violent coughing fits. He had suffered extensively from the toxic smoke inhalation, yet his mind wasn’t on himself.

“Solo? Katherine?” he asked, his voice nothing but a wheeze. 

“They’re going to be fine,” I said. “They need to stay at least one night at the hospital, but they should make a complete recovery.”

“Good.” It was disheartening to see his body, scrawny as it was, work so hard to get a bit of air. His chest heaved painfully, his breathing labored, and it hurt my ears to hear him wheeze and cough. He had to be in pain, but no complaint came over his lips. He looked worried, though.

“What are you thinking?” I asked.

“It’s my fault,” he said. I leaned into him to overhear his words, his voice soft and strained. “These are the consequences of my actions.”

“No, please, stop.” I desperately wanted to comfort him, but how? The guilt was eating him alive. “Quinze did this, not you. You _had_ no choice.”

“I could’ve said no,” Duo said.

“You did what you had to do for the children,” I reminded him. 

“And look where it got them! They could’ve died, Heero! If it was only me, I-”

“No.” I cut him short.

“No?”

“Don’t ever think that,” I said. “Don’t you go there, Duo Maxwell.”

“Not everyone is as strong as you, Heero.”

“Are you kidding me? You’re the one who survived on the streets for so long, you’re the one who took the children in and looked after them…”

“I don’t mind if I have to live on the streets again, but Sister Helen and the children…”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said, more confident than I actually was. 

“How have you been?” He asked and I told him about my new home with the friendly landlady. 

“I want to call a friend who can help us,” I said. “You need special treatment, an oxygen therapy. The hospital isn’t equipped to-”

“Heero, stop,” he interrupted me.

“What? Why?”

“There’s no way I could afford that,” Duo said. “The hospital bills are skyrocketing. I have no way of paying them off.”

“That’s why I need to call that friend of mine,” I said. With my credit cards close to being melted, I needed Quatre to transfer money to help me out. “I just have to figure out how to make an interstellar call. I don’t have any credits with me; I put everything in my suitcase and I lost sight of it.”

Duo brought his hand to his chest. His fingers touched the silver crucifix and I knew what he was going to do before he unclasped the small chain.

“No, don’t,” I said.

“It’s pure silver.” He held the piece of jewelry out to me. I refused to take it. “Just sell it for the credits you need. I’m not worth it anyway.” 

“Duo…” In his self-deprecating state of mind, it was hard to argue with him. I wanted to contest his words heatedly, but I could see my words would fall on deaf ears. He wasn’t in the right place now, working so hard to breathe and stressed by the entire situation. He was in pain, and my own heart ached to help him. 

“It’s going to be all right,” I said, using the most clichéd expression I could think of. I was rewarded with a smile, half its usual brilliance.

“Ironically enough, there’s a pawn shop just a couple of blocks from the hospital,” he said. “I know the owner, because I used to… deliver stuff to him. He won’t rip you off that badly if you mention my name.”

He dropped the crucifix in my hand. I leaned into him again and pressed another kiss to the top of his head.

“Rest,” I said. “I’ll take care of things.”

“Just leave me,” he answered brusquely. “Help the children.”

“Rest,” I repeated and left the room.

\-----------------------------------------------------

I managed to pawn the crucifix for enough credits to make an interstellar call. The pawnbroker looked a little disturbed as he recognized it and when I mentioned Duo’s name, he even gave me a better price. My next goal was to reach the interstellar phone at the hospital and call Quatre. I trekked back and was relieved to see that no one was in line. I had experience with the phone device, no matter how outdated it was; it worked with a keypad instead of the much easier iris scan for identification. I punched in my codes and waited for the verification as I watched my credits swindle down quickly. The connection went through and as I didn’t know Quatre’s home number by heart, I called his office. Of course, his terribly efficient secretary answered, his ultimate shield from everything and everyone.

“I need to speak to Quatre urgently,” I said. “It’s me, Heero Yuy.”

“I’m sorry, Mister Winner is in a very important business meeting and he can’t be disturbed,” she said, leaving the _not even by you_ unspoken.

“Listen, this is a matter of life and death! I’m calling from a hospital in L2 and people are injured, including myself!” I worked myself so much up that I had a coughing fit. 

“I’m sorry…”

“Get me through Quatre NOW!” I barked at her. I would apologize later, but now I couldn’t care less about her offended feelings. I heard a click, then a deafening silence - did she put me on hold or did she disconnect…? No, the connection was still active. My heart beat against my chest. Come on, Quatre…

“…Heero? Is that you?”

“Quatre!” I yelled his name so loudly that I probably pierced his eardrum.

“Heero, where are you? It’s not like you to miss a deadline! Everything all right? You’re in the hospital?”

“I need your help,” I blurted out as quickly as I could. I was running dangerously low on credits. “Send money to the Common Colonies bank branch in L2.”

“How much do you need?”

Practical and effective Quatre, I could kiss him. “Send my savings, advances of my paycheck, anything,” I said. “The church burned down and I got nothing left and people need my help.”

“Slow down, slow down. I’ll make sure to transfer the money immediately. Are you injured? What happened?”

“Quinze,” I said, “find everything you can on a man named Quinze and his organization, White Fang. Operation Meteor. He blackmailed Duo into stealing stuff for him, including incriminating material on his bonds with the government. He burned down the church and-” the call was disconnected. My credits had run out. I hadn’t had time enough to tell Quatre that my cell phone didn’t work; I was sure he would try to reach me again. Sighing, I hung up the phone. Now it was time to play the waiting game; I didn’t know how long it would take for Quatre to transfer the money I so badly needed. 

In the meantime, I visited Solo and Katherine, both pale and coughing, but on their way to recovery. The children hadn’t been allowed to leave their ward yet, due to their delicate health; they bombarded me with questions about Duo and Sister Helen, and I took all the time to answer them patiently. They also wanted to know what was going to happen to them, now that the church had burned down. I tried to comfort them that we would find a way to stay together. Their sad faces didn’t doubt me, but they had been disappointed too often in their short little lives to keep an optimistic outlook. I said my goodbyes and stopped by Duo’s room again, only to find him asleep. His chest was bare without the crucifix. I vowed to get it back as soon as possible.

\-----------------------------------------

I decided against spending the night in the hospital. I would love to stay at Duo’s bedside, but sitting in a cramped position in a chair would be too hard on my body. I had magnificent luck, yet it didn’t mean I had my full health back. I needed good, uninterrupted sleep; I tucked away my feelings of guilt and prioritized my own rest. I wouldn’t be good to anyone if I ran my body into the ground. The next morning, I went to the branch of the Common Colonies bank (after asking twice for directions) and managed to get access to my account. The bank manager was a bit suspicious when I handed him my warped ID and press card and he sniffed them, the bad scent of the smoke still lingering. He didn’t ask me any questions though, as my identity checked out.

I was ready to tell him to call Quatre if he doubted me; fortunately, it wasn’t necessary. When I asked him how long it would take to replace my credit cards, he told me that I had to count on three weeks; far too long, as I wanted to take Duo out of here as fast as I could. Finally I had access to my account and my jaw went slack when I saw the amount Quatre had transferred. He had to be convinced that I wanted to buy the entire colony, it was way too much money. Well, I’d deal with that later, for now I withdrew a sum converted into credits, large enough to get me through the day and pay for what I needed. 

Back at the hospital, I visited Sister Helen first and told her that she didn’t have to worry about the hospital bills. It brought tears to the kind woman’s face and she was momentarily speechless, in between coughing fits. After she had calmed down, I told her about my plan involving Duo.

“I’m going to take him to Earth,” I said, “so he can get the oxygen therapy he needs. He’s going to be all right, Sister.”

“Bless the Lord,” she said. “You’ve done so much for us, Heero. How can we ever repay you?”

“I want you to get better and not to worry,” I said. As if I was going to ask for any money or to be paid back. “As soon as I leave with Duo, I want you to have my room at the guesthouse I currently reside at.”

“My place is with the children,” she immediately answered.

“I know, and I wish I had a place for you and all the children.” I heaved a sigh. “Churches don’t grow on trees, unfortunately. The children are safe for now and you need to regain your strength, Sister Helen. Don’t worry,” I repeated. “When you’re released from the hospital, take my room at the guesthouse. When I get back with Duo, fully recovered, we’ll be sure to find a solution.”

“You’re right,” she said. “Thank you so much, Heero.” She looked a little scared. “That man… he won’t come back to hurt us again, will he?”

“I sincerely doubt it,” I said and tugged at the sheets in an awkward attempt to tuck her in. Her question made me wonder, though. Quinze had his precious flash drive, but he could bother Duo again. After all, why would he stop? He knew a lot about Duo and he still had the upper hand by blackmailing him. I wanted to reassure the nun more than anything; I would go after Quinze myself. She smiled at me and told me to take good care of Duo. It wasn’t difficult to make that promise to her and after she had fallen asleep, I sneaked out of her room to hop over to Duo’s.

“Were you able to talk to your friend?” he asked, taking a long time to speak as he needed to draw a breath between every word.

“Yes,” I said. “We’re leaving here soon, Duo.”

“Leaving? What do you mean?”

The doctors had told him about the oxygen therapy, but he had discarded the treatment right away, as it wasn’t available on L2, or affordable. I brought him up to speed about the money and the possibilities for treatment on Earth. “Without proper treatment, you’ll die,” I said gravely. “Your lungs are dirty and damaged by the smoke inhalation.”

“You should get the treatment,” Duo said. “You inhaled a lot of smoke as well.”

“I’m fine. I’ve been very lucky.” I thought back to what the doctor had said. “I want this, Duo. For you, and for us.”

“For ‘us’,” he repeated, almost dumbfounded. “After one kiss?”

“After one look at you,” I declared melodramatically and it amused him so much, that he had to laugh. He immediately ran out of breath and dissolved into a painful coughing fit.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to laugh at you,” Duo said when he had calmed down. His smile was more exuberant than ever since he’d been in the hospital. “You said it in a really funny way.”

“I was serious,” I said, mock-offended.

“I know. I’m serious too, right now.” Duo looked up at me. “I don’t like being indebted to anyone, Heero.”

“You’re not in any way indebted to me,” I said. “You would’ve done the same for me.”

“True.” I was very glad to hear his answer, without one second of hesitation. He wasn’t about to let it go, though. “I can’t accept it. It’s too much.”

“No, it’s not. You’re coming along with me to Earth, to start your therapy,” I said stubbornly. 

“The children…”

“… are taken care of, as well as Sister Helen.” I told him about the guesthouse and the friendly landlady, who I was sure was going to befriend the nun. I halted for a moment, realizing I was waltzing all over him, like an ongoing train. “I’m sorry. I’m imposing on you, aren’t I?”

“I have to say, you leave me very little choice.” He didn’t sound overwhelmed, and his smile was soft, acquiescing. “All right, but I want to return to L2 as soon as possible.”

“After you’ve recovered,” I couldn’t help but comment.

“After I’ve recovered,” he said and promptly dissolved into another, harrowing coughing fit.

\------------------------------------

The trip to Earth was hell. Even though I had bought first class seats, Duo was in no condition to travel. I had to make the best out of two bad choices: either the horrendous space travel so he’d get the oxygen therapy, or stay at the hospital on L2 and receive no therapy at all, and die a horrible slow death as his lungs were giving out on him. How I wish I could do his breathing for him! I wish the shuttle wasn’t so slow; it was obvious that it was taking Duo so much more strength to draw another breath, his chest heaving. Before we boarded, I had made another interstellar call to Quatre to inform him about our itinerary and ask him to have an ambulance and paramedics ready upon our arrival.

As always, Quatre went above and beyond my request: not only was an ambulance waiting for us, we also had special clearance so we didn’t need to go through customs first. Duo was immediately hooked up on a oxygen machine and I could see the relief washing over him, finally able to breathe effortlessly. Every ounce of his energy had gone into breathing, draining his body which now visibly relaxed. His ghastly pale face and skinny frame drowned in the blankets he was wrapped into. 

“Where are you taking him?” I asked the paramedic. “I want to come along too.”

“Center Hospital,” the man answered. “Get in, Mister Winner was counting on you to ride along with us.”

I knew Quatre would use all of his influence to help us, even though he didn’t owe me anything and Duo was a stranger to him. It was just who he was; kind and compassionate. I made a mental note to thank him profusely as soon as I saw him again. At Center Hospital, Duo was transferred into a private room and he fell asleep immediately. During the space flight he had been too anxious to rest and now that he could breathe again effortlessly, his tired body surrendered to the healing power of good, uninterrupted sleep. I sat at the edge of his bed and heard the oxygen machine do its work. The therapy would clean and clear his lungs so that Duo would be able to breathe independently again. There was no telling how long it was going to take or if he was going to recover completely; the damage to his lungs still needed to be assessed. The door opened and I expected a doctor to come in, but to my utter surprise, it was no one else but Quatre himself. He approached me with a curious look in his eyes as I rose from my chair. 

“So good to see you, Heero,” he said, keeping his voice low as to not wake Duo up. “I was really worried about you.”

“No need,” I said. “I’m a tough one, remember?”

“You sure are, and a lucky one to boot. Are you sure you don’t need any medical assistance?”

“I’m fine. I haven’t inhaled as much smoke as Duo.” I shuddered at the memory of Duo lying on the floor of the church, surrounded by those toxic, black clouds. Quatre looked past my shoulder, at Duo in the bed.

“I can see why you wanted him to be here,” he said. “He’s very handsome. That’s not the only reason _you_ wanted him to be here, right?”

For the first time in my life, I blushed. Yes, my reasons had been pretty selfish, but on the other hand, Duo had been the one who needed the most help. “I couldn’t save everyone,” I said. “If it were up to me, I’d taken Sister Helen and all the children with me.”

“Sister? You mentioned a church when you called me… but you didn’t tell me he’s a priest,” Quatre said. “Heero, do you know what you’re getting yourself into?”

“It’s too late,” I said, more dramatically than I intended. “I’ve fallen head over heels in love with him.”

Quatre chuckled. “I thought something had changed in you. What happened to my tough-as-nails, badass reporter? Are you going to write stories about domestic happiness instead?”

“Don’t mock me,” I growled at him, but I knew he wasn’t serious. Leave it up to Quatre to pick up on any change; I hadn’t noticed it myself, but if Quatre said so, it had to be true.

“Let’s step outside for a moment.” Quatre turned away from the bed and I followed his example, leaving Duo to sleep, blissfully unaware.

 

Center Hospital had a cafeteria on the ground floor and we ordered coffee and tea. Sitting in a quiet corner, Quatre leaned a little into me. “I have to talk to you about Quinze,” he said. 

“After your frantic call, I made some calls myself. What I found out about him, made my stomach churn.”

“That bad, huh?” I didn’t want to admit how scared I actually had been. I had seen the man’s eyes and I knew he would stop at nothing. Blackmailing people was probably the most ‘innocent’ crime he ever committed.

“You’re lucky to be alive, and Duo too,” Quatre said gravely before sipping his tea. “He has sunk into the government deep. His White Fang organization is associated with armed rebels, militant factions and terrorists cells all over the colonies and Earth.”

Suddenly my coffee tasted like liquid ash. “I wanted to write a book about L2 and its denizens,” I said. “Now I want to write about the government and Quinze.”

“Be warned,” Quatre said. “Exposing such a manipulator will open a can of worms. Are you ready to face the consequences?”

“I can deal with anything,” I boasted.

“What about Duo?”

“What about him?”

“What if Quinze retaliates? You’re going to expose a very dangerous man, Heero. There’ll be a lot of garbage coming your way. You can deal with it, but what if Duo can’t?”

I had to think for a moment. Duo was a survivor; I was sure he could handle anything, but Quatre was right. Exposing Quinze and his organization also meant exposing Duo. The tabloids would jump all over his shady past as a thief and in the worst case scenario, he would never see the children again. I couldn’t tell this story without him. 

“Whatever you do, I’ve got your back,” Quatre said. “You owe me a book or two.”

“I owe you something more,” I said. “The money. Thank you for the quick transaction.”

“No problem.” He put the empty teacup back on the saucer. “I have to get back to the office. Let me know what you’ll decide, promise?”

I promised and watched him leave. I already made my decision, but I wanted to ask for Duo’s consent.

\------------------------------------------

I spend every free moment at Duo’s bedside. I retrieved my laptop from my apartment and typed, typed, typed as if my life depended on it. My notes were in my suitcase, somewhere on L2 if it hadn’t been trashed already. I still had a lot of the stories in my head, but I mourned the loss of my Nikon with pictures of the church and the children. Instead, I kept typing: all the stories from the people seeking refuge and shelter at Maxwell Church, Solo, Katherine, Sister Helen, the rest of the children, and of course everything I recalled from Quinze. I typed frantically, writing everything down without paying attention to coherency and consistency, this was a first draft after all.

Duo was often awake as I was working, curiously following the movements of my fingers on the keyboard. I talked to his doctors who confirmed to me that the damage to his lungs wasn’t permanent, fortunately, and after a week, Duo could breathe on his own again. The moment that he was disconnected from the oxygen machine was a very happy one; Duo was so ecstatic that another violent coughing fit overwhelmed him, but he was able to overcome it on his own. However, the doctors didn’t esteem him fit enough for space travel, much to his disappointment. I understood he wanted to return to L2 as quickly as possible, but his body simply wasn’t strong enough yet. 

For now, my apartment would be his home, where he could recuperate at his own pace. As he had shown a ravenous appetite in the hospital, I made sure to stock my pantry full so he could eat whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. I also bought clothes for him: modern black slacks and shirts, with a white shirt to wear underneath as to attest to his priest vocation. I was painfully reminded of a mishap; I had completely forgotten to reclaim his crucifix from the pawnshop. Duo didn’t ask about it when he thanked me for the clothes; after he had finished dressing himself, he looked stunning.

\---------------------------------------------

“This is where you live?” Duo asked. My apartment wasn’t as big as the church of course, but it was fully furnished and I had electricity, gas and running water, so it had to be a small palace in his eyes.

“Yes,” I answered. “I hope you like it.”

“It’s amazing.” Duo turned around to smile at me. He appeared a little restless; he missed L2 which was, despite everything, still his home. He hadn’t brought up the subject of going back to the colony as he didn’t want to press the issue; he felt bad enough about all the money I spend on him already. I couldn’t get him to accept it, simply because he wasn’t used to anyone spending a single credit on him. “You have such a magnificent view of the city! Earth is much prettier than I ever imagined.”

I returned the smile and refrained from commenting that _my_ view was even more magnificent with him in it. I didn’t want to pressure or haste anything between us. During Duo’s hospital stay, we didn’t do much more but holding hands and a little bit of touching. Our kiss in the church had been the only one so far; I didn’t know exactly where we were standing. It came as a pleasant surprise to me when Duo took a step forward and put his arms around me, albeit hesitantly. In return, I didn’t hesitate to mimic his gesture and pulled him closer, gently. The typical hospital scent was still clinging to his body and his hair, and I inhaled it. I couldn’t care less about the scent; it made me so happy to feel his chest against mine, heaving in an even rhythm. 

“I can hear you breathe,” I said.

“I wasn’t afraid to die,” Duo answered, voice slightly muffled. “Even if I had to suffer.”

“I know,” I said. “But you have to admit, this is much better.”

“Much, much better,” he said and I could just feel him grin. I leaned into him and kissed him on the top of his head.

“You’re tired,” I said. “You can have my bed. I’ll take the couch.”

“No, I’ll take the couch,” he objected. “I don’t want you to be a guest in your own home.”

“I want you to be comfortable.”

“I’m fine, Heero. Don’t worry.”

“The doctor said you had to regain your strength,” I reminded him. “You’re not ‘fine’ yet.”

“Yes, nurse.”

“Go to bed,” I urged him, but he didn’t move and I didn’t protest. We stood there for a while, silent, enjoying each other’s company. The light of the setting sun colored his hair a wonderful palette of chestnut, cinnamon and gold. I pressed a kiss here and there on the top of his head, not demanding anything in return. 

“How’s your book coming along?” he asked out of the blue. He hadn’t asked about it while in the hospital.

“The first draft is almost finished. Would you like to read it? I need to add your story to it as well.”

“I’m too tired to read or talk.”

“Whenever you’re ready,” I said soothingly. I wanted Duo’s story, and I wasn’t really sure why he felt so uncomfortable about it. 

“It’s not worth it.”

“What isn’t?”

“My story. Tell Katherine’s, Solo’s, Sister Helen’s. Not mine.”

“Duo, please.. You don’t have to feel guilty about what happened with Quinze at all. He’s the bad guy here, not you.”

“You heard the stories about me and you know what I am,” he said, his voice smothered. He wasn’t emotional, just frustrated. “A thief, a fraud.”

I moved my arms from his waist to his shoulders and pressed him even closer. “Do you think I care about _what_ you are? I care about _who_ you are. I care about you. We can’t control people’s minds or thoughts. There’ll always be assholes like Quinze: bad, bigoted and judgmental people. Forget about them. Think about those who love and care for us.”

“Well said.” Duo sounded exhausted. “I should lie down.”

“Yes, you should.” Not taking no for an answer, I guided him to my bedroom. I never prioritized interior decoration; it was a simple, Spartan room with a bed, a cupboard and a small chest of drawers. “I’ll be in the living room. If you need anything, just holler.”

He nodded solemnly. I closed the door behind me and went back to the living room, but not before swinging by the kitchen first to acquire myself a large mug of coffee. I booted up my laptop and continued writing and editing the first draft of my book. It was way past midnight when I blinked and rubbed my eyes. I’d been working non-stop four hours and my eyes were straining themselves to keep track of the words on the screen. It was time to make up the couch.

“Heero?”

His voice was too soft to startle me. I hadn’t heard Duo come out of the bedroom and I turned around. 

“Yes?” He didn’t answer. He looked vulnerable in my oversized pajamas, his frame still not completely recovered from the entire ordeal. I got up from my chair and made my way over to him, a little stiffly because I had been sitting in the same position for hours. I reached for him and he extended his hands so I could take them in mine. “Something the matter?”

“I’m too much baggage,” he said. 

“You’re not,” I said in return. 

“The hospital bills. Everything you bought for me, the clothes, the food… I’m too much baggage. You should ditch me.”

“Nonsense.” My voice was nothing but a whisper. I didn’t know what to say. I had never been in such a serious relationship before, as I had always been too busy with my work. However, I knew I wanted to be with Duo for the rest of my life. But what if Duo didn’t want to be with me? He had burdened himself with the children and the church, not to mention layers of guilt about what happened. “I’m not going to ditch you.”

“I can never pay you back,” he said. Ah yes, the he-didn’t-like-to-be-in-debt part.

“A relationship isn’t based on who pays for what,” I said, “but on the equality of the partners. You’re not obliged to pay me back anything.”

“I don’t know.” For a moment, I thought he was going to withdraw his hands. “I want to do something in return.”

“There’s something you can do,” I said, keeping my voice low as to not break the intensity of the moment. “Recover. Get your health back up. Regain your strength. Return to L2 and rebuild the church.”

He looked up at me. “Without you?”

“I’m not going anywhere without you,” I said and was rewarded with an exuberant smile. “Now get back to bed.” His hands slipped out of mine, but he didn’t turn around to leave. Instead, he walked to my improvised workplace where I had set up my laptop. Curiously, I followed him. He sat next to the laptop and stared at the screen. His hand went up to his neck - the crucifix wasn’t there. In my haste to get him to Earth for the oxygen treatment, I had broken my vow and forgotten to retrieve it from the pawnshop. I sat down, not understanding what he was about to do. 

“My name is Duo Maxwell,” he suddenly spoke. “I was born on L2…”

I put my hands on the keyboard and started to type.

\--------------------------------------

While I was worked on my book, Duo picked up reading material from my personal library. He devoured Grisham, King, Preston & Child and Ludlum, as well as Khaled Hosseini, Chaim Potok and Isabel Allende. We spend our time in the living room, where I did my best editing and writing with Duo lying on the couch, on his belly with his face hovering over the pages of a book. In the first few days, when he still hadn’t regained all of his strength, Duo was prone to fall asleep with his nose literally in the book; I just smiled and carefully replaced the book with a soft pillow. He gained weight, drank coffee for the first time in his life and was immediately hooked, and we went on walks to get fresh air and build up some stamina. We visited the local library and museum, as well as stores and cafés.

Quatre visited, as well as my fellow reporters Trowa Barton and Chang Wufei. Duo got along with them immediately and Trowa brought two very precious gifts: my suitcase with the Nikon, and Duo’s crucifix. At Quatre’s request, he had traveled to L2 and tracked down both objects; I was ecstatic about my camera with the pictures of the church and the children, but I was even more ecstatic for Duo, who was rendered speechless when Trowa handed him the silver jewelry. As Quatre knew every detail of our story, he had also send Trowa over to the guesthouse to speak to Sister Helen. She had made a full recovery and was hoping for Duo’s -and my- safe return. She knew where all the children were staying, so she could keep an eye on them. Solo and Katherine were with her, at the very same guesthouse. Duo was very happy to hear the good news, and I noticed how his hand was on his crucifix the entire time. When he went to the kitchen to get us coffee, I managed to get a minute alone with Trowa, almost bullying my colleague into confessing that he, also at Quatre’s request, had conducted an investigation into Quinze. 

“His position with the government is currently a very precarious one,” he said. “Not everyone is open to bribes, and some people have already questioned his ‘bonds’ with the government. Even though no one has actually seen him lit the church on fire, almost every denizen of L2 connects him to it.”

“If only we could get his goons to rat him out,” I grumbled. Sister Helen and the children would be too scared to testify, and I wouldn’t want to add more to the drama. “I want the bastard on the run and realizing that he has nowhere to go.”

“Be careful, Heero,” Trowa warned me. “He’s still a dangerous man. When driven into a corner, there’s no telling what he’s going to do.”

“I know.” Quinze wasn’t the first person whose actions I had exposed. In my work as a reporter, I had discovered quite some conspiracies and secrets on a political and military level, with me running in front of a stomping Gundam on a battlefield as the absolute pinnacle of my career - even though I’d been running for my life, it had yielded me quite the awards and prizes, with a Pulitzer to top it off. I wasn’t looking for another award right now; I wanted Duo’s story to be told, the story of a mismanaged and misled colony caught in the clutches of selfish men, and how to turn it around for the better. We stopped talking about Quinze when Duo returned from the kitchen with the coffee.

My mailbox was spammed with requests for interviews; reporters wanted to talk to me, but mostly to Duo. I declined and forwarded the mails to Quatre’s office; his secretary could deal with it. A paparazzo managed to snap a picture of me and Duo on one of our walks; his enhanced lens had also caught the crucifix and the next thing I knew, Duo was on every front page of every tabloid, as the “priest who lost everything in the fire”. I was livid, but there wasn’t much I could do about it, unfortunately. My field of work also had its negative sides, and making a big circus out of it instead of writing an objective article happened all the time. It was a way of how others made their living, but I wasn’t happy about it. I spoke to Quatre, who had finished reading the first draft of my book. 

He wasn’t responsible for the growing buzz about its publication; Quatre was an honorable, discreet man who wouldn’t leak anything to the (other) press. His Global Press was well renowned for its objectivity and integrity; Quatre Raberba Winner didn’t do gossip and speculation. He didn’t know where to search for the leak, and maybe it wasn’t a leak at all; just him mentioning to someone else that I was writing a book was enough to get the gears going. Many people knew my reputation and I started to regret my expeditious enthusiasm for this project. I was dragging Duo down with it, while I had wanted to shield him from it. Of course there were going to be consequences, but when I brought up the subject, Duo told me to continue, reassuring me that he could handle whatever what was coming his way. 

With the pictures I retrieved from the Nikon, I composed the final layout of my book. Trowa told me that he had found the suitcase with a L2 denizen who had taken it when the church was on fire, with the intention to give it back as soon as he saw Duo again. I was convinced of the man’s good intention as nothing was missing; all of my crumpled notes were still in the suitcase. I discovered that I had forgotten some details; fortunately my book hadn’t been send to the printers yet and after the last corrections and additions, along with the pictures, the first edition became a fact.

\---------------------------------------

Duo didn’t know what an official book presentation was and he had never heard of a ‘launch party’ before. It even made him nervous, the idea to appear amidst a crowd in formal wear; I told him I would rent a tuxedo for him, if he wanted to come. I left the choice to him, but he understood how important it was to show his face at the party; it would be like he was giving L2 a face, and my book extra strength and character.

“Are you sure?” I asked. 

“Yes,” Duo said. “And yes.”

“If it’s getting too much, you’re always free to leave,” I said. “You’re not a carnival attraction. People will be vying for your attention, though. They’re fascinated by the handsome priest from L2 who nearly sacrificed his life to save war orphans.”

“Aren’t they fascinated by you?” Duo asked, and he sounded amused somehow. “The courageous reporter who ventured into a burning church to save everyone inside?”

I had downplayed my own involvement, simply because I wanted the attention to go to Duo’s story, not to mine. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” I said again.

“I don’t do anything I don’t want to,” Duo answered mischievously. I longed to take him into my arms, but I allowed Duo to set the pace of our relationship. We kissed each other goodnight, still sleeping separately; I had grown accustomed to my couch. We did everything couples-style, except for being intimate; I was ready for it, but I sure as hell wasn’t going to enforce myself on Duo. “Well, that’s not exactly true,” he said, downtrodden the next second. “Quinze made me do everything I never wanted to do.”

“He’s no longer of your concern,” I said.

“But he’s still a free man, right?”

“Yes, he is, unfortunately. But when my book goes international, he’ll find himself between a rock and a hard place and if he’s smart, he’ll disband his White Fang and finds himself a rock to crawl under.”

“And what if he doesn’t?”

“He won’t find a warm welcome at L2. Burning the church down was a costly mistake, in every sense of the word.”

“It was.” Duo tilted his head a little. “All right, let’s get on with this. I’ll go to the launch party, if only to see the fruit of your work.”

“Thank you,” I said and now he was the one to kiss me first; not full on the lips but modest on the cheek, eliciting a chuckle.

\--------------------------------------------

One of the special guests of the launch party was no one else but the Queen of the World. I had expected Quatre to go full out, but I hadn’t expected him to call me up on stage and have Relena Peacecraft present me with the first copy of my book. I listened to her speech and her solemn vow that the Earth Sphere United Nations would help L2 and its denizens with transport, trade, education and medical support. She had obviously read my book and held my hand with grace and elegance, thanking me for my work. I couldn’t help it, I got red in the face.

A book or an article by my hand had never had such an impact before. I wasn’t really objective anymore, not with Duo by my side - it was fully personal, and maybe that had shone through in my work, or ‘a plea for peace and equality for a colony that never should have been overlooked’, as Relena called it. I thanked the Queen of the World while the audience applauded. I had to give a speech too and I had prepared myself well; still, I was glad the official part was over and I could relax with a drink. 

It was too much to ask, of course. As soon as I left the stage, I was surrounded by people; fellow reporters, high society and business men who wanted to talk to me. Overwhelmed, I wanted to push everyone away; I wanted to be with Duo, who I had lost out of my sight. Quatre came to the rescue and even the most influential people bowed to the media mogul; without any further problem, he extracted me from the crowd and guided me to a secluded spot, where Duo was waiting, shielded by Trowa and Wufei.

“Heero, Duo, the entire world wants to talk to you,” Quatre said. “You are celebrities now.”

“That’s not what I wanted,” I said sourly. “I didn’t want people to gawk at us, I…”

“I know,” Quatre interrupted me. “Give it some time, Heero. It’ll wane, and then we can focus on what’s important: a stable society for L2.”

“I’m very impressed with the Queen’s program,” Duo said. “We can’t live off charity, and I prefer a solid foundation over a short-term patch. I want a future for everyone, but mostly for the children: a society where they can find a job, a house and someone to love.”

“It’s going to take some time before the situation will change,” Quatre reminded him. “Don’t underestimate the aftermath of Quinze’s influence. Before all his pawns are removed and the current mentality of the government is reversed to modern politics, you could find yourself at least one decade further. But L2 will change, there’s no doubt about that.”

“If only I could snap with my fingers and make it all right in just a few seconds,” Duo sighed dramatically. 

Quatre smiled at him. “You’re strong. You and the children are going to make it.”

“I have Heero,” Duo said. 

That was my cue. “Quatre, I’d like to resign,” I said. From the look in his eyes, I knew he had seen this coming. Trowa and Wufei didn’t bat their eyes either; it had been so obvious. “I’m   
going back to L2 with Duo.”

“I’m sorry to see my star reporter go,” he said. “I’ll be sure to visit the both of you on L2.”

“Thank you for everything.” I couldn’t thank him enough, he was such a good friend. 

“You’re going to keep in touch, right?” Trowa asked. “I’m sure the interstellar communication lines between L2 and Earth will improve immensely.”

“Of course,” I said. “I won’t forget about you guys.”

“To find the irrefutable Heero Yuy talking about his emotions,” Wufei mocked me, albeit in a gentle spirit. 

“They’ve always been here,” I said, matter-of-factly. “It just took someone to bring them out.”

“There you go again,” Duo grinned at me. I mimicked his grin. Who knew that I could be such a sappy romantic, indeed? It was getting late, and even though Duo didn’t mind the crowd and didn’t seem tired, I took his hand in mine and he looked up at me.

“Do you want to stay?” I asked.

“You should mingle with the crowd,” he answered. “So many people want to talk to you, like Quatre said.”

“That’s not an answer to my question,” I said. “Do you want to stay?”

He hesitated and his smile was tentative when he looked at me again. “I want to go home.”

“Then we go home,” I simply said.

\-----------------------------------

An extremely hectic time followed. To promote my book, I had no choice but to honor a couple of requests for interviews; I even agreed to a thirty minutes documentary so I could tell all about the church, the children, Duo’s story and L2 in general. My decision to move to L2 wasn’t that drastic, but it entailed a lot of work; I had to sell my apartment (I didn’t see why I should keep it, I didn’t see myself returning to Earth for a long time to come, not even for a visit) and a lot of my other ‘earthly’ belongings, like my furniture. Duo wanted to keep my books to build a library for the children, so we packed everything up in tall boxes. I couldn’t believe the amount of paperwork I had to fill out and between the interviews, sales of my stuff, and the date of our final trip to L2 coming closer, I found myself running on empty.

“What’s more on the to-do list?” I asked, slightly cranky. 

Duo read out loud. “You have an interview with Earth News Network tomorrow morning, and the day after tomorrow, tea with the Queen.”

“Ah yes, Relena,” I said. Coincidentally, our ‘roles’ in the living room were reversed: I was on my belly on the couch, exhausted, and Duo was on the chair behind my desk with the laptop. That, and my bed, was about the only furniture still left in the apartment. The new habitants would move in next week. Time was really pressing now, but at least I got all the forms for my permanent relocation to the colony done. 

“Will her brother be there, too?” Duo teased me with one of my prior crushes. I turned my head away from him, groaning; not that I was angry with him, but the thought of how I behaved back then, like a love-struck teenager, embarrassed me. 

“It’s just tea with the Queen.” My voice was smothered as I pressed my face into the cushion. Soft, warm cushion… sleep… 

“Not many people can say that they ‘just’ have tea with the Queen. You’re amazing, Heero.”

“Hm-m.”

“Do you want to rest a little? You’ve been so busy.”

“Hm-m.”

Silence. I figured that Duo had left for the kitchen, even though I didn’t hear him move. My head was spinning; I still had so many more things to do. Prioritize, I thought to myself. Step by step. What was the most important thing I should be doing now? Prepare myself for the interview tomorrow. I… felt hands on my shoulders. A light pressure, applied between my shoulder blades, right on the tensest knot in my muscles. The touch alone made me relax and Duo continued, while I reveled in the attention. He placed his hands here and there in an attempt to work out the knots; it was the thought that counted, and I enjoyed the attention. His hands went lower and I didn’t notice a thing, until his fingers curled around the hem of my shirt, lifting the fabric up. I was about to ask what he was doing, but instead I held my breath. His fingers darted over my skin, examining, exploring… trailing down my spine, tracing the muscles, poking, prodding my upper body. 

“You have a scar here,” he said.

“Yeah, but it’s not a spectacular one. I fell off my bike as a kid.”

Duo chuckled. “It happens to the best, I guess.”

I shifted my position and propped myself up on my elbow; Duo rolled the shirt over my head and I moved my other arm so he could take the garment off. He had seen my bare chest before, when I came out of the shower with nothing but a towel on. We hadn’t been this intimate before and I was longing for him so badly. Could this be the moment..? His eyes… they were different. Duo himself was more relaxed, after receiving a clean bill of health and knowing that he was returning to his home soon. Stress and tension were gone from his eyes, especially after the news that Quinze had left L2. The man was still a fugitive and I didn’t care where he was running to, as long as he wouldn’t show his ugly mug on the colony ever again. 

Duo leaned into me and pressed a kiss on my collarbone. I couldn’t keep my breath any longer and I softly exhaled. Some strands of his hair tickled across my skin; I craned my neck to keep watching him, as he trailed down my ribcage, pressing kisses here and there. I brought up my hand and raked my fingers through his hair. He tilted his head, his eyes half-lidded, and he brought up his left hand, stroking my cheek. My treacherous body was responding to the simple touches and Duo picked up on it infallibly. Worse, he send me a knowing grin.

“It was never my intention to make you wait this long,” he said, his voice a breathy whisper. “I didn’t set out to tease you.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “You had a lot on your mind.”

His lips brushed my skin again, a pleasant sensation. He rested his head on my abdomen, making sure to keep eye contact with me. His other hand was on my leg, moving up.

“Are you sure?” I asked, voice thick.

“I am.” No hesitation. 

“Let’s go to the bedroom.” He nodded and got up, reaching for me. I took his hand and we walked over to the other room, as my bed was much more comfortable than the dinky couch. He unbuttoned his shirt, but I stopped him. “Allow me,” I said and he nodded once more. I removed the black shirt, stumbling upon the pristine white shirt he wore underneath. I hooked my fingers into the hem of the shirt and slowly pulled it over his head, careful as to not break the chain of the crucifix. He was so beautiful. We kissed, and kissed more, every kiss growing with passion and intensity. He wrapped his arms around me and I pulled him closer.

“Are you sure?” I asked him again.

“Yes,” he answered, again without hesitation. “Heero, I want this.”

I just had to know. “Not because you feel obliged to, right? Not because you want to ‘pay me back’?”

“No.” He tightened his hold on me. “Because I love you.”

“I love you too,” I immediately said. The last bit of tension completely fell off my shoulders and I lifted Duo up, just long enough to lie him down on the bed. I proceeded to undress him, showering him with kisses all over. He kept touching me, his fingers stroking my skin as I worked to get the rest of his clothes off, before I finally undressed myself. He looked at me and I felt confident and strong. Duo opened his arms, inviting me to come closer. I accepted his invitation of course, covering his body with my own. His hands on my back, arms holding me tight, he wasn’t about to let me go. There was nowhere else I wanted to be right now; we resumed kissing as our passion increased and yes, our lust intensified. We let go of our tension, of our reservation, no more holding back, no more hiding behind anything. We took our time exploring until the urge and the need grew beyond our control; we gave into the rapidly overwhelming sensations. It didn’t matter who was on top or who was the best lover; it was about what we shared, body and soul, and I didn’t want it to stop. Eventually, we had to stop, both exhausted yet extremely satisfied. We fell asleep soon after, still sweaty and entangled, but it was the best sleep we had in a long time, our minds at ease.

\---------------------------------

_Six months later_

 

“…and they lived happily ever after. The end.”

“Aaah,” the young girls gasped collectively in adoration, lamenting the next second that the story was over. One of the girls raised her hand.

“Yes, Sophie?”

“Sister, is the prince really in love with her?”

“Yes, he is, dear. That’s why he kissed her.”

“Kissed!” one of the other girls giggled and the entire group had a giggle fit. Sister Helen looked on amusedly as she closed the book. She turned her head towards me, as I stood in the door opening. 

“Heero, do you believe in happily ever after?”

At least fifteen young girls stared at me, curiously awaiting my answer. I didn’t need to think up an answer. “Yes, I do, Sister. I’m already living my happily ever after.”

The girls giggled again and then got up from their small chairs, thanking Sister Helen before rushing out of the room. The nun put the book on the table.

“Thank you for coming so soon, Heero. I don’t want to be a bother at all…”

“Anything for you, Sister Helen. What is it?”

“There’s a small leak next to the right window,” she said, lowering her eyes. 

“I’ll fix it right away,” I said. 

“I feel like such a burden,” she said. “So ungrateful. This building is so new, and I already start complaining.”

“It’s not a complaint, Sister. No one wants a leaky window. I rather have you point it out to me so I can fix it, instead of it getting worse.”

She got up from her chair. “Thank you, Heero.”

“No problem.” It wouldn’t take me too long to fix it; I had gotten rather handy the last couple of months. The rebuilding of the Maxwell Church had started as soon as Duo and I had landed on L2. I didn’t even bother to ask Duo if he wanted the church to arise on the same spot; it was a given fact. We removed the rubble and the blackened stone; it was difficult for Duo to do this, to go through the remnants of his home and see that there was nothing, but absolutely nothing left. It made me sad when I saw the crestfallen look on his face; I hoped that Quinze would never be able to find any rest or peace after what he had done. 

Despite the sad moments, Duo wanted to look forward and his enthusiasm and exuberance returned when we started designing the new church. With the revenues of my book and the donations pouring in from Earth, we had quite the budget for our design. I appointed myself Head of Finances, much to Duo’s amusement - and agreement, he trusted me completely - so we were sure not to blow our budget. It was also a given fact that the new Maxwell Church was going to be more than a church. More like a community center, where people could come together and meet up, not only for war orphans. Duo was adamant about starting a library and Quatre surprised him with another shipment of books, bought on an auction: a lot of murder mysteries and romance novels, but also text books on the medical, technological and economical field. Children’s books, fantasy books and fairy tales; he was beyond ecstasy when unpacking the books.

Now that we were building from the ground up, I wanted the church to dispose over the basic utility services that were common on Earth, but not yet wholly available on L2: running water, hot and cold, plumbing, heating, electricity. Sister Helen spontaneously busted out in tears when she found out; her biggest frustration and fear had always been the lack of running, clean water, especially when an injured child needed to be cleaned up. I really liked the idea of a community center and we divided the entire layout in three: church, community center, school. I made sure to contract local builders and craftsmen only to help out the local economy, and everybody was willing to help out. Such solidarity lived strongly among the majority of the L2 denizens; I had good hopes that, with a new course, the colony government could show the same kind of strength. 

I thought that I was working hard, but Duo put in even more hours. He went through all the donations and kept a watchful eye on who got what. The many shipments of clothes, toys, bicycles and general furniture were gratefully accepted and Duo was the one to keep an overview that no one was favored or left behind when it came to receiving goods. Relena, as Queen of the World, followed up on her speech and send the first of a large food shipment: mostly canned goods, but also powdered milk, and the children went crazy when there was also powdered _chocolate_ milk. Ever since Duo was on L2 again though, people searched him out for mental help and support, just like he did before. Duo wanted to help everyone, but he couldn’t divide himself in three. It was a hectic time again, but it was different than before. Back on Earth, I felt like I was closing every chapter, closing everything off, while on L2, it felt more like everything was opening up. 

My future was here, that was for sure. I oversaw the construction of the church and was very pleased with the thorough approach of the builders. The church took the main front of course, but the community center and the school were equally important and constructed adjacent to the church. Above the community center was the housing for the children and Sister Helen. She was very happy with her chambers: two rooms with a bathroom, and I left it to her to furnish and decorate it anyway she wanted. The poor woman was completely speechless, before she broke out in excited plans about several colors paint, carpeting and wallpaper. 

“Heero?”

“Yes, Sister,” I automatically replied, then realized I had blanked out on her. A new group of children was assembling in the class room; a mixed bunch, so I doubted the nun was going to read another princess-fairytale. “I’ll fix it later today,” I promised her. “I want to see Duo first.”

“You shouldn’t keep the Father waiting,” she said. I wasn’t disturbed by anyone calling Duo ‘Father’, despite him being so young and not officially a priest. Only the youngest children called Duo by his first name, the rest and the adults referred to him with ‘Father’, except for Solo and Katherine. I left the classroom and hurried to Duo’s office. Solo, that little snot who had stolen my camera and led me to the church in the first place, had come to me when we were busy removing the rubble. He wanted to show me something that the fire hadn’t reached: that silly little shed with the rusted tools in the garden, and the bike we had retrieved from it. 

The frame had bent a little bit due to the heat, but it hadn’t melted. The bike looked even more hopeless than before, and when Solo offered me a rag to help him clean it, I wanted to refuse first. After one look in his eyes, too old for a child his age, I took the rag and I went down on my knees to help him clean the frame. In-between my other duties and obligations, I helped Solo clean and fix the bike; piece by piece we restored it in utter silence. He started to talk about the trauma he endured in the fire when we were almost finished; I let him talk and listened to him until he was done, offering him a clean rag to wipe away the tears. I complimented on his skills with the bike; it brought a big smile on his face. He hugged me briefly before riding off with his bike, hollering that he had the best one ever.

Katherine had dealt with her experiences differently; she had clung to Sister Helen and never wanted to let her go. She stayed with the nun at the guesthouse, getting panicked and screamed whenever a match was lit. Thanks to Sister Helen’s patience and support, Katherine slowly grew confident around fire again. Her biggest victory was quite recently, when Duo asked her to light the candles in the church and she managed to do so, without suffering an anxiety attack. 

I knocked on the door of Duo’s office.

“Come in,” his voice rang out. I opened the door.

“You called?”

He all but bounced towards me. “Guess what I received in the mail today!”

My eyes darted over to his modern desk with laptop, and the stack of old-fashioned snail mail next to it. Wi-fi was still a bit spotty on the colony, but I had faith that would improve sooner or later too. On top of the mail were two unfolded letters, with official looking stamps and signatures. I knew what it meant and rejoiced along with Duo, who threw his arms around me for one of his exuberant hugs. 

“We’re approved,” he said and kissed me full on the lips, smacking loudly. I ravaged his bangs and nuzzled him. “Congrats, dad.”

“Congrats to you too, father,” I teased him. Solo and Katherine were our official children now, as approved by the government. Our status was exceptional of course, as we were a same-sex couple and Duo still listed ‘clergyman’ or ‘priest’ as his profession. We had filed for adoption for Solo and Katherine after the majority of the children returned to the church; some of them had been legally adopted by the families who had taken them in after the fire. That’s why Duo insisted on the community center, the school and the library: not all of the children were going to be adopted, and they needed education, guidance and support from us to find their way in life. Now we had the means to educate them, to raise them and prepare them for life in a new society that was shimmering with opportunities and chances, instead of a bleak, grim future. Aside from the children, adults were most welcome too: for a bite to eat, for a night of shelter or to take a shower. To meet up with others or take classes, and find themselves a listening ear and compassion. 

He beamed at me. “Are you going to tell them?”

“Sure,” I said. I tapped his nose. “They’re going to be so happy.”

“Solo looks so much up to you,” Duo said. 

“Katherine adores you,” I said in return. “We’ve got a daddy’s girl and a daddy’s boy.”

He kissed me. “You don’t regret it, do you?”

“Are you kidding? This is my happily ever after.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Oh, Sister Helen and her fairy-tales…”

Duo snorted. “Which reminds me, I have to bring paper and crayons over to the arts & crafts class later this afternoon. Who knows how many dragons and princesses will be drawn.”

“You’re my princess,” I said sappily.

“You’re my dragon,” Duo quipped and unabashedly put his hand south of my belt and gave me a light squeeze. 

“And you call yourself a priest?” I groaned, as he exactly knew where to put the pressure. 

“Why, yes.” Duo blinked at me, looking most innocent. If it weren’t for us being in his office, I would’ve thrown him on the floor and jump him; my sexy, strong and sassy Duo. I send him a look that told him he would face the consequences later this evening, in our own home; a modest two-story house next to the church.

“Then I’ll leave you to your business, _father_ ,” I said even though it was hard to break myself free. As expected, Duo clung to me just for a little longer to kiss me. 

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you too,” I answered, again without any hesitation. I didn’t miss my life as a reporter at all. I could barely remember how my apartment looked like. I was still in touch with Quatre, Trowa and Wufei, who visited us on a regular basis. Yes, there was much work to be done, that wouldn’t change, but we had taken such a large step in the right direction. I didn’t regret leaving everything behind me and go along with Duo.

L2 was my home. 

_End_

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End file.
